The Marauders
by ashjellison
Summary: This is my NaNo project for 2013 and I thought I'd put it up here. It's the Marauders in year four. Reviews are welcome and critiquing is, as well. Please no bashing, though. **DISCLAIMER** I do not own the Marauders. They soley belong to JK Rowling.


"Hey, Moony, you got that spell worked out yet?"

The small brunette boy laughed before replying to his friend. "Prongs, I have schoolwork to finish!"

"I told you about it three days ago! What is this, a new record for you?"

"Maybe if you'd get off your fat behind and help, the problem would be solved." This comment earned a bark of laughter from another teenager who had just walked up.

"He's right, you know!"

"Oh, shut up, Padfoot."

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was having a lazy day, with most of the students lounging in common rooms or by the lake. Except for three boys. They were camped out next to the Forbidden Forest, clearly in the mood to be rule breakers for another day.

Remus Lupin was a quiet fourth year. He had shaggy brown hair and emerald eyes. Remus was a bright young boy who loved to read. Currently, he was top of his class, which disgusted his two beast friends.

The first boy was also a fourth year. Though that was where the similarities ended between the friends. James Potter was a rambunctious boy who loved mischief. He had messy black hair that would never appear combed, and wore large, rectangular glasses. James' partner in crime was none other than Sirius Black.

Young Sirius could not stand to sit still. Everything he did, though, got him into trouble. James and he often had detention at least three times a week, for various reasons. He had black hair, cut above his ears, sticking up in every direction. Most fourth-year girls thought he was majorly handsome.

The only boy missing was a small scraggly boy, Peter Pettigrew. He had stringy pale hair and murky eyes. He was a very bad wizard, to be frank.  
Together, the four boys made up the Marauders. They were a very exclusive group, never letting anyone new in. The friends shared many secrets, and did just about everything together. An example of this was when Remus began transformations. You see, Remus Lupin was a werewolf. As a child, he was bitten by the infamous Fenrir Greyback. Werewolves were feared in the wizarding community, but Headmaster Albus Dumbledore was kind enough to let Remus attend school anyway. The boy kept to himself his first year, as much as possible, that is. But two boys kept pestering him. No matter where Remus went, James Potter and Sirius Black were always there. He would've had a break in the common room, but unfortunately, all three were in Gryffindor. It was one of the four houses in Hogwarts, the other three being Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Gryffindor was supposedly where dwell the brave at heart, though Remus never felt very brave. He never would fight back if anyone picked on him.  
After about a month of classes, Remus finally had his first friend. A shy redhead girl, Lily Evans was always kind to him. After another month, Remus decided to give the two most troublesome boys in school a chance. It turned out to be the best decision of his life, and they had been inseparable since. Eventually, the three boys let another one into their circle. Peter Pettigrew, a hopeless boy in all ways possible, followed the friend around wherever they went. He would laugh too loudly at their jokes and clap too hard if they did anything correct. James and Sirius let him in, as a joke at first, but he became an invaluable addition. When the boys would get into trouble, little Peter took the blame. Throughout the years, Remus revealed his secret of being a werewolf, and then settled himself on being friendless again. Peter ran away quickly, but Sirius and James stayed. They talked about it for a while, even after Remus went to bed. They decided to become Animagi, people who could transform into an animal of choice at will. After two years of grueling research (it would've probably been quicker if Remus had known), James could transform into a stag, and Sirius into a shaggy black dog. Even Peter agreed, after much persuasion and threatening from his two idols. He could turn into a small gray rat. Remus was delighted, as the months became much more interesting with his three best friends. He, James, Sirius, and Peter escaped at the full moon to become Moony, Prongs, Padfoot, and Wormtail, respectively.

As the day was ending, the Marauders got up to enjoy the evening feast. As they were walking up to the castle, Remus' friend Lily walked by. Immediately James perked up and ruffled his hair. Then, he began tossing a rock in front of him, having lost the Snitch. Sirius elbowed Remus and they both slowed down, chuckling at the inevitable rejection of their friend.  
"Hey Evans! What about that date you promised me?"  
The girl barely looked behind her, knowing full-well who was talking. "I've told you a million times, Potter. I don't go out with toe rags," she said sweetly.  
Sirius howled with laughter and even Remus chuckled as James turned beet red. "Better luck next time, Prongs!" Sirius called out. The rock sailed past him, narrowly missing his face. Sirius only laughed harder.  
Together, the boys entered their home away from home. The Great Hall was decorated as usual, with a bewitched ceiling reflecting the weather outside. Right now, clouds were rolling into a darkening night. As Halloween was approaching, there were candles floating above the tables, and carved pumpkins at Dumbledore's stand. The ghosts were zooming in and out while James lead the way to the Gryffindor table. Once seated, Sirius' eyes locked on someone walking past them.  
"Look! Snivellus!" he whispered to James.  
As the greasy-haired boy walked by the table, James stuck his foot out and watched as Severus Snape tripped over it. At the last second, he caught himself from falling, with help from none other than Lily Evans, who grabbed his arm.  
"What is it with you?" she cried. "Can't you leave him alone for one year! And you wonder why I hate you so much!"  
James sat in silence as she led Severus away with one last backward glare. Peter began to laugh, but stopped instantly from Sirius' look. "Well, mate. She's never gone that far before, has she?" He asked James gently, or as gently as the fourteen year old could accomplish. James didn't answer, just shoveled a couple bites of pumpkin stew into his mouth. "I'll meet you in the common room," he said before departing. Remus and Sirius dipped their heads in agreement and watched him walk away.  
They would have gone with their friend if they knew he was just going to pace the Gryffindor dorm for an hour. As it was, they finished their stew and had treacle tarts before walking slowly towards their dorm tower, each with different thoughts on their minds. Remus himself was contemplating his friendship with Lily, and how his friendship with the other Marauders was destroying the relationship. Sirius was thinking about his collection of motorcycle and Muggle girl magazines back home. He hadn't had time to go back to Grimmauld Place from the Potters'. That was all right, though. When he was at Hogwarts, he just discussed Quidditch in his spare time. Peter was trailing behind, thinking about how he was going to fail Charms if he didn't start practicing and taking remedial lessons. Though that would get him out of the circle for sure.  
When Sirius realized that James wasn't in the common room, he turned to Remus. "Do you think he is fine?" he asked, genuine concern in his voice.  
"I think he is just upset about a love that will never happen. He'll be fine within the hour, or at least by tomorrow morning. Until then, how do you feel about being beaten at wizard's chess again?"  
"I don't recall ever being beaten in the first place," Sirius replied.  
"Well, your mum always did say you had bad memory," Remus chuckled. Sirius joined in the laughter, as well as Peter, though he did not get the joke.

The evening passed and the temperature dropped outside. Sirius kicked a few first years out of the chairs by the fire and sat down with two of his best friends. They talked and laughed and shared chocolate frogs until exhaustion won them over. Then, they climbed up the familiar stairs to the dormitory that they had shared with James since their first year.  
James was laying in bed, staring at the ceiling when his friends came in. He did not feel up to talking, though, and hurriedly closed his eyes. The boy attempted to slow his breathing, but was positive Remus and Sirius didn't buy it. Thankfully, they didn't say anything, just got into their pajamas and went to sleep. James lay awake for a few hours longer, wondering about Lily. _Why won't she like me? Everyone else in the year likes me! Even Alice says I'm not bad-looking, and she's been dating Frank Longbottom for two years now! Maybe it's because of Snivellus...maybe I jinxed him one too many times. But what's with them always being together? He's disgusting and she's beautiful. Why are they friends and how can I destroy the friendship?_ Soon after he answered each question, James fell into a restless sleep.

Monday morning dawned bright and early, too early in Sirius' opinion. He crawled out of bed to find the dorm empty; even James was absent. _That prat_! he thought bitterly. He didn't mind Remus and Peter not being there; Remus would never be late and Peter got annoying after a little while. James, though, had always waited for him, no matter what happened.  
He didn't see anyone in the common room, either, which actually unnerved him. McGonagall had promised that if he was late one more time, he would spend a week's worth of detention learning how to transfigure a needle into a pocket watch, a feat some seventh years couldn't accomplish. As he raced out of Gryffindor tower, he saw a few students walking to their first class of the day. That, at least, meant that he had _some_ time before he was late. Instead of walking down each individual stair, he jumped down four at a time. After he made it down all seven flights, he sprinted past the great hall. On a second thought, he paused, ran back, and grabbed a slice of toast from the nearest table. Then he continued on his way, only slowing when the classroom was in sight. He watched the line of students trail into the room, then stood outside, steadying his breathing and eating his breakfast. When at last his heartbeat was steady, Sirius walked in and took his usual place next to James, flashing a winning smile towards McGonagall as he did so. She scowled back at him.  
"Cutting it close, are we, Mr. Black? Are you desperate to make watches?"  
As the class snickered, Sirius answered as politely as he could, leaving all the sarcasm out of his voice. "No, professor. I was caught up in breakfast."  
As she turned away, Sirius could've sworn he saw the smallest smile brush McGonagall's mouth. Instead of pondering that, he turned to James. "Why didn't you wait for me, mate? We always wait for each other; I thought I would be late alone!"  
"Sorry, but I didn't get much sleep last night and-"  
"Lily kept you up?" Sirius snorted, knowing full well that his friend would never actually be kept up by the tangible girl.  
"Will you keep your voice down! She's in this class, you know."  
Indeed, the freckled redhead was sitting across the room, as far as possible from James and his friends. She was laughing at Alice, who was miming something.  
James looked back toward his friend. "No, to answer your question,"-lying felt better for now-"I was just thinking about that Potions homework. But that's not the point. Moony woke us up early, and you wouldn't budge. He finally figured out the spell that will show the footsteps!"  
"He did? Well, what are we waiting for, let's try-" as Sirius was getting out his wand, Transfiguration began and McGonagall looked right at him.  
"Oh, Mr. Black! How lovely for you to want to show us how it is done! Go on then, transfigure that guinea fowl to a guinea pig, please."  
Sirius scowled and started the day's work. James muttered quietly, "We'll work on it this evening when everyone goes to bed." At least now he had something good happening.

The day dragged on. By the time lunch came around, the Marauders already had three lengths of parchment due on how a guinea fowl is different from a guinea pig and one length on mandrakes in general, as a review from Professor Sprout. By dinner, it was raining outside, which meant the Great Hall looked stormy as well. Remus had the most homework, because he was taking Arithmancy, as well as the other class his friends were taking. He loved the class, though and Lily Evans was in it. That was one class where their friendship could be recognized by actual talking.

As the boys sat sat at the Gryffindor table, James stared wistfully at Lily, who was walking in with Severus Snape again.  
"Hey, Prongs! You never finished telling me about the spell Moony figured out!" Sirius cried, in an effort to distract his best friend.  
"What? Oh-right. Yeah, Moony said he was running through spells in his head before falling asleep and couldn't think of any. During the night, he finally thought of one! In the morning, he woke us and we all ran into the Charms classroom-nobody is ever in it before breakfast-and showed us on a piece of parchment. And it worked! He's bloody brilliant!" James exclaimed.  
Remus blushed and modestly answered, "It wasn't really difficult, a simple-"  
"Don't be like that, Moony! Take credit!" Peter yelled, patting him on the back. Remus was secretly glad for the distraction, as he hadn't figured out the spell completely by himself, as he'd let his friends believe. Lily had helped him when he asked, without even questioning why. Remus could kind of understand why James fancied her.  
Dinner passed normally, except James and Sirius didn't try to trip Snape as he walked by. Lily looked grateful for this and even said hi to Remus because of it. James looked astonished that he had gotten a wave, and then remembered that they were friends. Afterwards, James looked up to the thunderclouds rolling across the ceiling and turned to Sirius. "Do you think we will still have Quidditch in this weather?"  
"Why don't you ask your captain, not your friends?" Remus asked, amused.  
Right then, Marcus Eaton, the Gryffindor captain walked by. "Potter! I've been looking for you all day! No practice tonight, but no matter what, we have it tomorrow. I don't care if it's snowing."  
"Right. Always a pleasure, Eaton," James grumbled.  
"You don't like it, you can leave the team. Well, no, you can't. We need a Seeker. Just be at practice, Potter!" He walked away to four boy's laughter.  
"Being the best Seeker in history has its perks," Sirius noted.  
"Don't boost his ego any more. His head won't fit through the door," Remus warned. Peter howled with laughter, and eventually, all the boys joined in. They laughed until their stomachs hurt and they couldn't remember what was so funny in the first place. Then they walked around the school for lack of anything better to do. Remus explained the spell to them.  
When it got late enough, they made it back to the common room, which held only three people at the late hour. When the first years saw who walked in, they scattered up to their dorms. Sirius and James sat in the chairs by the fire while Peter got parchment and Remus got his wand. Then they all gathered around and watched Remus. "_Apparent Vestigia_!" Tiny footsteps appeared all over the parchment, as if they had been there all along. Before anyone could say anything, Remus muttered something else. "_Vestigio moventur!"_ All at once, the footsteps that were still a minute ago began walking. They moved all the way around the paper. James watched one walk towards the edge and then disappear. "This is amazing!" he shouted. Peter jumped at the sudden noise and then blushed.  
"Thanks, it wasn't that hard. Hopefully it will work," Remus answered quietly.  
"Of course it will work! The Marauder's Map wouldn't be complete without it! Next assignment, Moony, figure out how to give each pair a name."  
The boys laughed before packing up and going into their dorm for the night. Sirius was the last to sleep, dreaming about how the Map would be when complete.  
The Marauder's Map was James' idea. He was caught sneaking a niffler into Snape's bag in the boy's bathroom on a deserted floor. When he finished detention that night, he told his friends how awesome it would be to be able to see who was coming at any given time. Better yet, to see where everyone was at any given time. Remus was quiet for a day and a half after that, thinking about what James had said. Finally, he told his friends that there was a way, but it would be extremely difficult. They planned on taking an ordinary piece of parchment and putting enough spells on it to show Hogwarts, the entrances in and out of Hogwarts, the school's grounds, and all of the people within the school's boundaries. The people would be represented as footprints, which would move according to the movements of the actual people. All that would be accessed by muttering a few select words, which the foursome was not in agreement with yet. James and Sirius wanted 'Snivellus is an arrogant fool and will die a virgin'. Peter wanted the simplistic 'Open you stupid paper!' And Remus was set on 'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good'. James and Sirius already agreed that if they had to, but Peter was set on his idea. It would also erase everything until the next use with another phrase, which the boys had decided would be 'Mischief Managed'. Its contents would not appear to anyone who didn't know the right words. A set of words would appear, instead, and they would be insults. All the insults would be the same for everyone, except for one Severus Snape. Each Marauder chose their own special insult for the boy, as he had been quite nosy lately when he figured out they were up to something. In the Map, they would be known as Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs. James was hoping to pass it down through his family and be legendary. They never anticipated what would actually happen.

Remus woke up, hating the day already. It was the second full moon of the school year and Remus dreaded having to turn. It was the most painful thing he had ever experienced, on top of being alone. For two nights at least he would have to sit in the Shrieking Shack and miss all of his school work and friends. When he got back, he would have to put up with Severus Snape teasing him, which he didn't mind. It was the fact that if Snape picked on him at all, James and Sirius would jinx him so bad he wouldn't be able to talk for three days. Remus hated how his friends treated everyone, but he was not willing to out an end to it. Besides, it made for a good laugh after a hard day.  
"Morning, Moony," Sirius stifled a yawn as he sat up in bed. "Big day, no?"  
"Easy for you to say," Remus muttered darkly.  
"Oh cheer up." James had woken up now. "We won't let you go alone this time."  
"You idiot. You know that I cannot control myself as a werewolf. If you come, you'll be-"  
He was cut off by a snort from Peter. "He thinks we are going to go as humans! He's delusional!"  
"What are-" Remus was cut off again.  
"He really _is_ delusional! Thinking we would risk our amazing lives to keep him company!" James laughed at this, and Peter joined in with an already laughing Sirius.  
Remus was already worn thin, being the day it was. He was at the end of his nerves. "Then WHAT?! What are you planning on doing to keep me company for the night that won't risk your precious little lives?"  
"Mate, we are all Animagi. We'll transform and stay with you," James answered, after stopping laughing.  
"You're-but-it's illegal!" Remus sputtered.  
"And since when have we ever aced about legality? We wanted to keep you company." Sirius scratched his ear. "Besides, you were the one who helped us become Animagi. Remember? The beginning of the year? You just didn't know we would use it for this time of the month, on top of our little midnight runs in the Forbidden Forest."  
"Of course I know you can turn. But why would you do it tonight?"  
"Because, you are our best mate. You always complain about the pain and the solitude. So we'll help. That's what friends are for," Peter said, as kindly as he could. "Now hurry up; we'll be late for class."

The day was another long one, but finally, supper came. Remus had already gone down to the Whomping Willow with Peter to wait the transformation. Sirius was waiting until after James' Quidditch practice to go down. They would meet Peter to get into the Shack, already in their forms. The three boys would leave Remus in the morning to go to classes (only on his insistence) and then meet up again on breaks and after dinner.  
James went down to the Quidditch pitch right after he finished a chicken leg. Eaton was already there, long with Kiera Knackley and Brent Lee, two of the three Chasers. James was a Seeker, Eaton was a Keeper. They were missing their two Beaters, Dennis Bradley and Brandon Clark. The last Chaser was Jane Smith.  
The rules of Quidditch were simple. There were three types of balls: the Snitch, the Quaffle, and the. Bludgers. The Chasers would toss the Quaffle back and forth between them, trying to score points by getting the ball through the hoops at either end of the pitch, guarded by the Keeper. Each ball through the hoop was ten points. The Beaters would hit the two Bludgers at the other team to try and make them drop the Quaffle. The Seeker chased the Snitch, a little tiny golden ball that awarded one hundred fifty points to the team that caught it. Usually, whoever caught it won the game, but there were records of the other team winning. Whichever team had the most points would win the game. Oh, and the whole game was played on flying broomsticks high up in the air. Simple.

"Everyone, in the air!" Eaton shouted when everyone arrived. James mounted his broomstick and flew straight up. It felt great to have the wind ruffling his already messed up hair. It whipped past him as he did a lap before coming back to the team. "Okay, I want to run a few drills with my Chasers. Bradley and Clark, just aim at each other for a while. Or at Potter, and then go hit it away from him. Potter, release the Snitch and catch it a few times. You seem antsy; do it good enough the first couple times and I'll let you leave early."  
The players flew off to practice and James let go of the Snitch he had been holding. It darted away from him instantly. After a ten second head start, the boy flew after it on his Cleansweep, the newest and fastest model out so far. He caught up to the little ball without breaking a sweat. Arm outstretched, his fingers clamped around the ball. It fluttered weakly before giving up. James then released it again. And caught it. Then released it.  
After thirty minutes of practice in the slowly-cooling air, Eaton flew toward him. "Good work, Potter. Do that in the game Saturday and we'll win for sure. You can go, then."  
"Thanks, Marcus!" James replied, already getting excited. He landed and changed quickly, then ran to the school entrance to meet Sirius. Sirius was already waiting for him, holding a large box.  
"No questions, mate," he said with a smirk when he saw James' look towards the cargo. "Eaton let you off early?"  
"Yep. Team's still practicing back there."  
"We'll, good thing you're done. The moon isn't fully out yet." They both looked at the sky then. It was steadily growing darker, and the moon was just about to rise.  
"We'd better go," James said, grabbing one side of the box. Together they walked toward the Whomping Willow. Right before they got within range of its dangerous branches, both boys dropped the box and grew smaller and furrier. Where they had been a few seconds before, now stood a fully grown stag and a huge bear-like black dog. James nudged his friend with an antler when he saw a small rat scamper out of the hole in the tree. Peter sat on a knot in the tree and it froze completely. Sirius grabbed the end of the box in his mouth and dragged it towards the opening. James followed. They entered Remus' hiding place and were immediately engulfed in darkness.

Through the tunnel they went, little Peter leading the way. James had a hard time trying to fit his antlers through the small dirt opening. Suddenly, they heard a yell, and then a shriek of pain. Finally, a howl. Peter quickened his pace, the others hurrying along behind him. They emerged into a dark room, the Shrieking Shack.  
It was a little room, with broken furniture pushed toward the walls. A moldy smell lingered in the air, along with floating dust. Instead of their friend, a werewolf sat in the corner. Right when it heard the footsteps, Remus stood and bared his fangs. As the stag, rat, and dog appeared, the werewolf lowered its hackles and walked over. After sniffing each animal in turn, Remus slowly backed up and sat down again. It was only then that James realized what his friend meant when he said he wasn't himself during the full moon. He truly didn't recognize them.  
The four animals stared at each other for a while before James finally remembered. He crawled over to the box Sirius had brought, careful not to make sudden movements. Sirius caught on right away and jumped up. Remus bared his teeth, warning everyone to stay calm. Sirius grabbed the end of the box and tore it open. A few bottles spilled out, clanking against each other as they rolled around. James sniffed a bottle and then jumped in delight, knocking his antlers on the ceiling. Sirius yelped and rolled a bottle to Remus. Peter got the next, and James himself took the last butterbeer.  
It was Hogwarts' finest, nicked from the house elves in the kitchen. The drink was a thick and creamy soda-like beverage. Each boy found a way to pry the top off, except Peter, whose rat paws were too small and weak. Remus used his teeth to open the bottle and they all sipped the warm drink. After two more bottles each, the Marauders were too tired to continue. They curled up, side by side, and tried to sleep. Before rest came, however, thoughts flooded James' mind. The most prominent was _Is Dumbledore going to wonder where we are? _Then sleep overcame him.

In the morning, James felt a small nibble on his ear. He jerked awake, tossing Peter across the Shrieking Shack. At the rat's squeal, Sirius woke up. Only Remus stayed asleep, fortunately for his friends. James wasn't sure what would happen if a werewolf saw them trying to sneak away.

The morning was crisp, the sun just rising. James watched as Sirius shook the dirt from his coat and transformed back into a human. Peter and he did the same.

"Well that was a total adventure!" Sirius said, looking more excited than ever before considering the time.

"I feel bad for him. He didn't even recognize us," Peter whispered.

James quelled him with a look. "Moony wouldn't want your pity. I think it was a grand night. Tonight we will sneak back in. No Quidditch, so I can be there on time."

"More butterbeer?" Sirius asked innocently.

"Definitely!" Peter shouted, causing a few birds to fly from the forest in alarm. All three boys laughed and then shushed themselves, worried about waking Remus. As they made their way back to the castle, James threw his arms around his friends and sighed.

" I hope this doesn't change. You guys are great, you know?"

"Don't get all mushy on us, Prongs. I'll have to shove flobberworms down your throat again," Sirius warned playfully.

"If I start to go mushy, I'll hand you the flobberworms!" James laughed. They joked around like this until they were back inside eating breakfast.

"Ugh, first class today is Potions," Lily Evans muttered to herself as she walked by them.

James practically fell out of his seat. "Evans! Hey, Evans! Sit by me in Potions?"

The redhead turned around and threw James a dirty glare. "Not even in your dreams, Potter."

"Ooh, better luck next time Prongs," Sirius teased. James gave him the same look he had just received from Lily and consoled himself by shoveling eggs into his mouth. Throughout the rest of lunch, he stayed quiet, a feat only accepted by Sirius because he constantly had food in his mouth. He made himself laugh at his friends jokes., but he wasn't listening. _What was the matter with him? He was the best-looking guy in the fourth year. Heck, he was the best-looking guy in the school! Except maybe that Strike guy. Ravenclaw. Tall, muscular, handsome. So _that's _why Lily didn't like him! She obviously fancied Strike! It all made sense to James now! He would just have to figure out how to get rid of the wise guy. Maybe jinxing, but that might not make him leave forever. The Unforgivable Curses were completely illegal, but James told himself that if it got him Lily Evans, he might be able to use the-_

"Prongs. Earth to Prongs. What is up with you?" Sirius was asking.

"Sorry, I was thinking about the Potions essay I haven't done," James lied.

"I didn't do it either! High-five, mate!" James weakly held up his hand for Sirius to slap.

"Ready?" Peter asked timidly, afraid to disturb the friends' moment.

James stood up immediately, grateful for the excuse to leave. "Come on, Padfoot, Potions is calling our names."

James and Peter led the way out of the Great Hall, a grumbling Sirius following slowly behind. The Potions classroom was in the dungeons, making it formidable to even think about the class. Gryffindors had the lesson with Hufflepuffs, which was always pleasant. The little Hufflepuffs just smiled as they bustled around, never making much fun of anyone at all. This was fine with James; he had enough on his hands with the Slytherins already.

The door was ajar, admitting the steady stream of students into the classroom. James sat down and then began looking around the classroom. It was fairly large, with a chalkboard in the front, though nobody ever used it. A bookshelf was in the corner, filled with different volumes of Potions textbooks. Next to the copy fourth years were using, James saw the O.W.L. level book. It was over twice the size, with a moldy, falling-apart cover. James was satisfied with just being fifteen for the time being, not having to worry about huge exams at the end of the year.

A large desk was placed at the front of the room, with a chair behind it to hold Professor Slughorn during lessons. Today, Slughorn walked in and waved his wand; the door closed and locked behind him. James' eyes wandered toward all of the desks and the people occupying them. He found Lily, and when he looked away, a Hufflepuff smiled and winked at him. Startled, James jumped in his seat and turned to face the front quickly. He didn't want to lead anyone on.

Sirius, who had seen the whole ordeal, flashed a wry grin at the girl and then whispered to James. "Afraid of a little wink, mate?" James blushed and pushed him away. "Ready to see if our new charm works, then?" he tried again innocently.

At this, James perked up. "Excellent!" Before Slughorn took his seat, James and Sirius pulled out their wands beneath the table and pointed them at the professor's chair. A whispered spell was spoken, and an instant later, Slughorn sat down. A loud farting noise echoed through the classroom, silencing all chatter. After a second of looking around, all of the students burst out in laughter, while Professor Slughorn turned beet red. He stuttered about, only making his class laugh harder. Finally, after tears were running down everyone's faces, peaceful quiet ensued.

"All right! Who did this?" His double chin wobbled as his scanned the room. His eyes narrowed in on the pranksters. "You may as well not put those wands away, boys. Black, Potter, you both have one length of parchment due tomorrow about how you worked the charm and what went into it. And have you finished my other essay?"

He caught the guilty looks on each boy's face. "Make that essay four lengths and have it tomorrow, as well. Now, let's begin. I want you all to try your hands at a Draught of Living Death. It's a little advanced, but I'm sure one of you might be able to make something." He threw a pointed look at Lily. "You have the rest of class to work. Open your books to page three-hundred and twenty six. All supplies you do not have can be found in the front storage cabinet. You may begin."

He went to sit down, and then seemed to think better of it. Sirius laughed quietly, but then stopped when Slughorn conjured a plush chair out of thin air and shot a triumphant look at the two of them. "No need to show off," Sirius muttered darkly.

James got his cauldron from underneath their desks. He then turned to the right page and stared at it for a while. He look to his right and saw Sirius doing the same thing. Neither of them was very good at Potions. He snuck a look at Lily and was dismayed to see her already adding ingredients, a faint steam trailing from the cauldron.

James rushed to the front to get a handful of ingredients; whatever he thought he needed was in his hands when he sat back down. He looked at the first set of instructions again.

Fill the cauldron with water.

Bring the water to boil.

Crush and add wormwood.

He could do that. Simple. "_Aguamenti!"_ he muttered, pointing his wand at the cauldron. It steadily filled with water, and then he made a small flame below it. After about a minute, James decided it would take too long and heated the flame more. And more. And more. Within minutes, the water was boiling, almost splashing out of the cauldron; James quickly cooled the flame down and let the water sit. _Crush and add wormwood._ What was the wormwood? In the book, the picture appeared to be the plant sitting to his left, but it could also be the one in front of him. Deciding to chance it, he grabbed the one in front and took out his knife. It chopped easily, and James picked up the pieces and tossed them into the still-bubbling water.

"How are you doing that?" Sirius questioned, frustrated.

"Padfoot, it says add and boil water. That's it. Then you take the wormwood and add it, whish makes the liquid turn clear, like-" They both turned to James' cauldron and saw the forest green liquid at the same time. "Well, not like that apparently. Why did it do that?" James asked himself, frantically flipping through his instructions.

"What did you add again, Mr. Potter?" Slughorn was next to them now, peering into the murky solution.

"Wormwood, sir. Right here," James pointed at the leftover plant in front of him.

The professor merely chuckled. "My dear boy! That's a shrivelfig! You should probably look over the ingredients again. I'll ask you the differences tomorrow. One night, my boy, one night." With that, he walked away, casually making his way towards Lily Evan's desk.

"Nice going, Prongs! Now see how your potion turns out," Sirius laughed.

James scowled. "It will still be better than yours! You can even boil water!"

The smirk slipped off Sirius' face. "I'm working on it. Shut up and leave me be for the class."

James chuckled and turned to his book again.

Add a spoonful of powdered Asphodel roots.

Stir three times counterclockwise.

That seemed easy enough. Right as he took out the Asphodel, though, a booming shout rang through the room, startling James enough to pour much more than a spoonful into his cauldron. _At least it's powdered,_ he thought darkly before turning to see what the fuss was about.

Slughorn was standing next to Lily Evan's desk, beaming into her cauldron. "Excellent, Miss Evans! Absolutely wonderful! Class, gather around! Miss Evans has created a near perfect Draught, and as a fourth year! If she had a few more minutes, all of the lilac would have turned to clear! Dear, this is better than many full wizards could have done on a first try! Well done, well done! No homework for you tonight, just be sure to rest your mind before tomorrow! We will be making a Hair-Raising Potion!"

James let Slughorn's gloating drone on and started to put supplies back. He wanted to be out right when the class ended. "_Scourgio!"_ he muttered, erasing his cauldron's remnants. He threw his book into his bag and then helped Sirius clean up. They didn't talk about their failures for the day; Sirius hadn't ever gotten the water to boil.

"Okay, class dismissed! Boys, make sure to have your essays tomorrow, then. Have a good day." James rushed out of the room, Sirius on his heels. They walked without slowing down until they got to courtyard, where Peter met them five minutes later.

He took one look at their faces and grinned. "Lighten up! We have a lot more pranks to try out, and today is the only day we have time! Get out of your moods and meet me in the bathroom on the second floor in ten minutes. I'll grab the stuff!" he shouted, practically shaking as he rushed back towards the school. Over his shoulder he cried out, "Oh, Remus is going to hate us for doing this without him!"

Both Sirius and James looked at each other before laughing; Peter never took charge. "You get 'em, Wormtail!" Sirius shouted after their friend. "Well, you heard him! Let's go! I wonder which prank he was talking about, though," Sirius grinned. They walked slowly back to the castle, enjoying one of the last sunny days of the year.

The rest of the day passed rather quickly and eventful. Peter had everything ready in the bathroom by the time Sirius and James had arrived. They blew up three toilets, then turning the overflowing water to ice. Filch slid all the way in, fell down, and knocked himself unconscious with his mop handle. Two poor first years had to take him to the infirmary, leaving the bathroom closed for the day. After lunch, Flitwick canceled the Charms lesson so he could talk to Dumbledore about 'a serious issue'. Astronomy met during the day to go over the lesson for that night. Dinner in the Great Hall had bats flying around since it was Halloween Eve. And after everything, the three boys went back to the Whomping Willow to stay with Remus for the night. They fell asleep after four butterbeers each and didn't have a single dream.

The next morning, the Marauders went up to breakfast together, since Remus was better. Last night hadn't even been a complete full moon, but it was just a precaution. The Great Hall was decorated with floating pumpkins and the normal candles. Orange and black draped the walls, where ghosts were flying in and out of the room. A few miniature broomsticks were zooming around the Hall, in light of the first match of the season tomorrow. It would be Gryffindor against Slytherin, a match always worth seeing.

The morning post came as usual, by owls swooping in. For once, all of the Marauders received something: Peter got a small letter from home; James' parents had sent a chocolate frog card he had wanted when he was eight (he wasn't complaining, at least they tried); an owl dropped the normal _Daily Prophet_ in front of Remus; Sirius turned red with anger as a tiny owl landed with a dark black envelope. He snatched the letter with such force that the owl fell over and then stumbled in its haste to get away.

"What was that all about, Padfoot?" James asked quietly as Peter opened his letter.

"It's from my parents, I believe." He opened the letter and scanned it. Scowling, he handed it to James to read.

Sirius-

We wanted to let you know that your decorations are not befitting a pureblood. Especially not the pictures of female Muggles. I'm writing to let you know that I am removing them. By the time you are home next summer (please do not feel the need to make it for Christmas), your walls will be bare. Also, you need to straighten up, or I will start sending Howlers. If those don't work, you will no longer have a place on the Black Family Tree. And if you decide to disappoint me further, you will not have a place in this family.

Why can you not be more like Regulus? He is such a sweet boy, already learning so many things. You would do well to pay more attention to the Dark Arts. That is, Defense Against the Dark Arts. I hear the teacher this year is a bore. Your father and I firmly believe that more should be included about how Muggles should be put in their place. They simply cannot be allowed to run around and make fools of themselves. They were put here to serve us. And they shall, one day. One can only hope that day is soon.

Also, that Potter boy. Don't stay around him. He is trouble, and I have gotten one too many letters explaining what trouble he has gotten you into. I would've hoped you knew better, but obviously not. Maybe you will listen to your dear mother. The Peter Pettigrew you know, he's a lovely boy. Do invite him to stay with us for the summer. His parents can come anytime, as well. Oh, and I have recently heard that there is a werewolf at the school. Stay as far from that Lupin as possible. I wouldn't want you to get murdered to early on.

Your father says hello. We will see you next summer. Again, do not feel obligated to come home earlier. Do not be such a disgrace to this family as you were last year.

-Walburga Black

James handed back the letter before laughing. "What's she got against me? And 'Stay as far away from that Lupin as possible'. Looks like Mrs. Black has it in for us, Moony."

"It's not funny, Prongs," Sirius said, still red with anger.

"It is, though. You don't give a hoot what your mother thinks, anyways. And who cares if you are off the tree? Now you can be more like your uncle. Besides, Regulus isn't-"

At that precise moment, Sirius' brother walked back. He threw a suspicious look at James and Sirius and continued on to sit with his friend Crabbe.

Sirius burst out in mirth and turned to his friends. "I guess you're right. Who gives a bloody muffin about my mum?" At this, even Remus laughed. "The only thing I wonder, though, is why does she seem to like Wormtail so much?" he murmured to himself as an afterthought.

"Wait, look at this," Remus said urgently. He held up his copy of the _Daily Prophet._ "Look at the headline," he urged.

James leaned over Peter's head and read the front page.

_**DARK MAGIC COMING BACK**_

The man who calls himself Lord Voldemort has been known as the leading dark wizard in Britain today. So far, he has murdered two people, one being a Muggle. He does not seem to care about the International Statute of Secrecy that has been in place for witches' and wizards' safety.

"I saw the man last week. He was walking on my street at night, holding his wand high and setting fire to the bushes lining each house. When he saw me, he smiled this evil smile and Disapparated on the spot," one Arabella Figg, Little Whinging, reports.

Another report proves that the man has little respect for laws in general. It is one of multiple accounts of Voldemort using the Cruciatus Curse, one of the three Unforgiveable Curses. "I was standing in the country-side. I had nothing to do all day and my late husband was buried there. I saw a small shack in the distance, one that I had not remembered being there. When I reached the front door, I heard a man's low voice behind me. It said, 'Do not enter. Disapparate now if you have any sense'. I turned slowly and saw Voldemort standing there, his wand pointed at my chest. I asked, 'Who are you?' afraid of the answer I would receive. '_Crucio!' _he screamed. An intense pain flared through my body. I fell down and lost all feeling of my body, except the feeling of a fire rushing through my veins. I couldn't breathe, couldn't live much longer. And then, he raised his wand. The pain disappeared, leaving me heaving on the ground. I looked back, scared for my life. I couldn't believe it; the man was smiling! Before I could Disapparate, though, he looked at me with those cold, calculating eyes and whispered, 'I am Lord Voldemort.'"

The chilling tale gives us information on who Voldemort is. He is a very careful man, but has no feeling towards humans. It appears that he may not have many emotions at all, except for anger. He likes pain. The man looks young and handsome, probably in his early twenties. His actual age is closer to his fifties. Experts claim he uses an anti-aging potion to stay youthful. The man has been using Dark Magic for about four years. Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, has claimed to know Voldemort best, but refused to say any more.

It appears that Voldemort is trying to gather followers. He has also requested have his name inspire fear; therefore have it not used in everyday language. If you have any more reports or sightings of Voldemort, please send an owl to the _Daily Prophet _headquarters.

As each boy finished reading, an impenetrable silence followed. Finally, Peter squeaked out, "What if he comes here?"

"Don't be stupid, Wormtail," Sirius said. "He'd be a fool to come to such a secure place."

"Sirius is right. Don't worry about Voldemort coming into Hogwarts," Remus reassured his friend.

"Besides, there are more important things to worry about. Such as, if Voldemort doesn't want his name to be used, what should we call him?" Sirius scoffed.

"You-Know-Who?" joked James. The others laughed their agreement before splitting up for their morning classes.

That evening, the Marauders were sitting in the same chairs that they had been that morning. No matter what he had said, Remus was a little worried about the whole Voldemort thing, too. It seemed impossible that someone could break into Hogwarts, but wasn't Voldemort himself an impossible man? All of his textbooks said that an anti-aging potion could be taken for only so long. Definitely not for thirty years. He even asked Slughorn after the class had filed out of the room. The professor had stated that no, it shouldn't be possible, but that some extraordinary students manage to find ways to do (or get) almost anything. The way Slughorn had said it (a little nervously, as though the question was almost personal) and had included the word _student_ was a bit odd, but Remus didn't let himself ponder his professor's way of speaking for too long.

His friends were talking about the upcoming Quidditch match.

"I'll have to get up before the sun!" James protested.

"It will be a good game, I hope. I don't want to waste my morning on something that won't be," Peter mumbled, too quiet for the others to hear.

"My best mate will be the star of the match, as usual!" Sirius cried, throwing his arm across James' shoulder, narrowly missing Peter's nose. "He'll have to wait to catch the Snitch, because otherwise the game will be over in ten seconds! Nobody would even get the chance to score!"

James laughed mock-modestly, though Remus could tell he was enjoying the attention. "Don't let it get to your head, Prongs. An airhead is definitely not going to help win over Lily, you know."

Sirius laughed harder as James stammered out a protest. Eventually, though, they all gave up on laughter and went back to the common room. James turned in early. Peter followed suit a little later and Remus stayed up reading while Sirius threw a few fireballs that disintegrated in the air at a couple of first years. Finally, all four Marauders were up in bed, sleeping deeply and each dreaming different things before the morning.

Sirius woke to sunlight streaming in through the dormitory window. Normally, he would've sleep until James got up, but today, it was Peter throwing pillows at his head.

"Come _on!_ Get up, Sirius! You're going to miss the first match of the season! Then James will hate you forever and we will all leave-"

"I'm up, Peter. I'm up," the messy-haired boy repeated, as if to convince himself.

Remus poked his head out of the curtains surrounding his bed. "It's a good thing, too. We were starting to get worried. I was just about to send Peter here to the infirmary."

"I know what she would have said. 'It's a common disease called sleep. Many people like this disease and hope to get it often in their lifetimes'. Now can you guys hurry up so that we make it to the pitch on time?"

The Quidditch pitch was huge, with hoops on either end for scoring. Bleachers for the students sat on parallel sides, raised to see the game better. Luckily, Madame Stringshest was refereeing this morning's match, which meant a fair game would be played against the Slytherins today.

The Great Hall was nearly empty due to the match starting in half an hour. Everyone was getting seats in the stadium. Usually the Marauders all ate together, but Eaton got nervous before matches, especially against Slytherin, and had called an early practice. Sirius sat next to Remus and across from Peter. He grabbed a slice of toast and spooned some egg onto it. Then he covered it to make a sandwich. Opening his mouth to eat a bite, Sirius watched the owls fly in with morning post. Unlike yesterday, nobody got anything today, except for Remus. He quickly scanned the _Daily Prophet _and held it out for his friends to read. Nothing remotely interesting, unless you liked the subject of weak cauldron bottoms.

At five minutes before the match was scheduled to begin, Sirius lead the way down to the pitch, his friends trailing behind and talking. It was a long walk, and Sirius found himself wishing that he could just Apparate. There were two problems with this thought, though. First, you couldn't Apparate within the Hogwarts grounds. Apparently, many older students tried each year and just ended up falling down. Also, Sirius could not yet Apparate. He wouldn't have lessons until he was in his sixth year, and he would not be licensed until he was sixteen. No matter, as the walk was almost over anyways.

The Quidditch pitch was filled with people. Usually, the entire school would come out on the three Saturdays a year to watch a game. Some professors mixed with the students in the bleachers, and Albus Dumbledore himself sat in the box dedicated to professors and staff. The teachers enjoyed watching students battle safely. But often enough the battling wasn't very safe. Today was no different.

Madame Stringshest walked out onto the field. She magically amplified her voice, though she needn't have, for the entire stadium had gone silent in anticipation for the coming match. "Today is the first match of the Quidditch season! It will be between Slytherin," she waved her hand in the general direction from which the Slytherin team was now approaching amid boos from the Gryffindors, "and Gryffindor!" A smattering applause and some whistles and shouts erupted from the Gryffindors, drowning out the Slytherin boos. The Gryffindor team walked out onto the field, led by Marcus Eaton. Sirius immediately spotted his best friend, who was wearing his Quidditch uniform, his trademark messy hair and rectangle glasses, and the stupidest grin Sirius had ever seen. He was carrying his Cleansweep, a present from his parents over the summer.

"Captains, shake hands!" Stringshest's voice boomed. The Slytherin captain, Nathan Oliver, quickly grabbed Eaton's hand, and it was clear he was trying to crush the other boy's fingers, though Eaton's face showed nothing. "Mount your brooms!" the next command rang.

Sirius watched James climb onto his broom with expert ease. He smiled and waved towards what Sirius could only hope was him, Remus, and Peter. At the whistle, fourteen brooms rose into the air and the Quaffle was tossed. Sirius watched a Slytherin Chaser grab the ball and then get rammed from the side by a Gryffindor. A red-jersey took the ball and sped toward the end of the pitch.

Sirius didn't even bother listening to the commentary anymore. It was interesting, of course, but too confusing. He used to listen during the first part of the game, just to see who was scoring, but even that became difficult to focus on. Now he would just watch the blurs of color streak across the sky and then hear cheers and boos on each score.

"BOO! That was a foul! Call him out, Stringshest!" Peter's high voice was yelling right in Sirius' left ear.

"Will you calm down?" Sirius shouted at him. "What even happened?"

"That Slytherin Thomas guy flew straight into one of our Beaters! She almost fell off her broom! Stringshest had better call that, or…"

While Peter thought of what he was going to do, Sirius turned to Remus. "Watch the game for me for a second. I'm going to duck down." Remus nodded and Sirius disappeared.

He literally meant that he was going to duck down. Sirius dropped to a crouch on the bleachers, below everyone else. This enabled him to focus in the quieter environment. He didn't actually have anything to think about, other than his family letter yesterday. _Why _did_ his mum seem to like Peter Pettigrew suddenly? And his family, too? The Blacks never associated themselves with any family at all, except some of the most pure purebloods._

"TEN POINTS GRYFFINDOR!" Sirius jumped up, knocking his head on Remus' elbow.

"What happened?" he shouted.

Remus looked at his best friend, deciding whether to be amused or exasperated. Amused won in the end and Remus laughed. "Referee called a foul and gave the Quaffle to Gryffindor. We scored." He paused. "James is still searching," he said, answering Sirius' unasked question.

"Good. He'll find it within the next ten minute, I bet. Wanna bet, Wormail?" After making a one galleon deal on James finding the Snitch in ten minutes, Sirius looked for his best friend. James was flying high, scouring the pitch for the tiny golden ball. He was circling, and the Slytherin Seeker was following suit, knowing that James was the better player. All at once, James' eyes locked onto something far below and he dove. His broomstick plummeted straight toward the ground, and he stretched out his hand. Right before he hit the ground, he pulled out of the dive. The Slytherin Seeker, who had also fallen into a dive, pulled up too late and slammed into the wall. Everyone looked excitedly at James, who shrugged his shoulders and resumed flying.

Sirius turned to Peter and shook him. "He feinted! He FEINTED IT!"

Peter grinned. "And that is just another reason why our best friend is the best."

They exchanged beaming grins and turned back to the game. James had not yet caught the Snitch. At the end of the ten minutes, Sirius handed over a galleon.

Another hour passed with some dirty cheating from the Slytherins. The Gryffindor Beaters got a few good hits in, one right to the Slytherin Keeper's stomach. As he landed on the ground to catch his breath, Stringshest called a foul (Come on, ref! That's not a foul; that's their job!" the boy in front of Remus shouted). Luckily, Eaton saved the Quaffle. At the end of the hour, the score was fifty-sixty, with Gryffindor slightly leading.

Then Slytherin scored. And then again. They were now winning the game. _James, you had better catch the bloody Snitch and end this game! _Sirius thought desperately. Once again, James' eyes locked onto something. This time, however, Sirius followed his gaze and saw the golden Snitch hovering right above the ground near the Gryffindor hoops. James dove…and the game was over. Gryffindor won, putting them in the lead for the Quidditch Cup so far. They won by one hundred forty points in the end.

That night, Gryffindor threw a huge common room party. James was hoisted onto shoulders and walked into the room. He held up his newly caught Snitch and ruffled up his hair even more, to make it look windswept. He saw Lily and started to make his way over to her, but he made it about two steps before people swarmed him and she walked to her dorm, uninterested in the party.

The party lasted until dawn, and James stayed the whole time. He finally went to bed as the sun was rising. He slept until noon.

The week passed without event. The Marauders walked the halls, attended classes, and got into trouble. James and Sirius spent four their evenings in detention, for being linked back to the toilets, along with making some of the candles in the Great Hall fall. The fact remained, though, that they didn't mind detentions.

The partners in crime had purchased a pair of magic mirrors the previous summer. If you looked into one, you would be able to see whatever the other could see. James and Sirius would talk throughout their whole detention, the professor in charge being none the wiser.

On the last day of the week, detention was over and the Marauders were getting comfortable in their chairs in front of the fire. They were all discussing different things, talking over one another when the conversation strayed. James was talking about Muggles and their technology, Sirius was talking about a motorcycle that he wanted to put a flying spell on, Peter was talking about the Potions exam he had most likely failed, and Remus was discussing his Arithmancy homework.

"I don't even know what a computer is, but Muggles seem to like them a lot. I've heard that they are actually able to fly around the world in one night to access information for the Muggle."

"I think that a flying spell would not be too difficult to perform; then I can have a motorcycle that can make really quick getaways."

"Oh, I cannot believe that I forgot to put the Asphodel on my list! That's the main ingredient! Slughorn is going to fail me for sure, and then I'll never pass my O.W.L.s!"

"I wonder how to do problem nine. It seems like I could solve it one way, but I could probably solve it a different way than he showed us."

Remus' musings brought an unexpected guest over. The four friends ceased conversation at once. Lily Evans perched on the arm of his chair while James gaped at his friend. "You have to solve it the way he showed us in class. It explains everything, actually," she said kindly. "I'll let you copy my notes if you need them. Or if you need any help, come find me!"

"Sure, Lily. Thanks; I don't think I would've ever figured it out. I'd actually appreciate the notes, though."

"No problem!" The redhead ran up to the dormitory to get her books.

James' was still sitting with his mouth hanging open. "What did you do that for, Moony?"

Remus raised his eyebrows as he began scratching on a new piece of parchment. "Do what? She just helped me with Arithmancy."

"Arithmancy would be code for something else. Like, 'let's sneak into the supply closet for an hour. We've got time, Lily.'"

"You think that's what's going on?" Remus doubled over in laughter. James stared at him impatiently until his friend calmed down. "She is in my class. I can't help that. I apologize for attempting to understand my work for the year. You know, maybe you shouldn't be so prone to jealousy over a girl who isn't yours."

Before James could retort (fully knowing that Remus was right), Lily walked over from the stairs. "I have them organized by date. Just look through for ones you need. If you want all of them, I wrote down a spell on the last past that will copy them down in your notebook."

"Thanks, Lily. You're a lifesaver," Remus sighed in relief, before looking at James sheepishly.

"I just need them back by next week's exam. Goodnight, then!" Lily began walking back towards the dormitory before seeming to think better of it. She turned around and headed straight for James. His hopes rocketed upward, his mind begging for just one date. She paused right in front of him and said, loud enough for the surrounding third years to hear, "Computers don't fly, Potter. Even wizards could tell you that." With that, the beautiful girl walked away.

Before the third years could even laugh, Sirius glared at them and they scampered away. Peter looked frightened of James' temper, but he needn't have worried. James was more mortified than anything else, leaving him in complete silence. Remus looked at his friend gently. "Listen, Prongs, I'm sorry about what I said. I would never go after the girl you fancy. I will stay away from her if you would like."

"No, you're good. Sorry I didn't trust you. Let's move on, then."

Remus nodded and then paused. "I'll be right back," he promised. The boy ran upstairs to his bed in the dormitory. Reaching underneath, he pulled out a wooden box with ornate silver designs. He flipped the lock up, and grabbed the parchment inside. It still had little footsteps on it from the last time they'd tried to create something.

Remus closed the box, shoved it back to its original place, and took the stairs two at a time, clutching the Marauder's Map to his chest. His friends were sitting where he left them and he flopped into his vacated chair. "Why don't we try this? We've got a free night with nothing better to do. I haven't figured out a good spell yet, but I suppose we could try to make one."

Sirius scowled at him. "Remus. We are fourth years. You may be able to do complex magic, but we cannot. And how do you even create a spell? They don't teach us that here!"

"I'm not sure," the brunette admitted. "I've heard about other spells being invented. And what about that Levicorpus Crabbe tried? It's not an official spell, and it only became popular last year. Which means somebody had to have invented it. I think it's worth a shot."

"Moony, I agree that we should try. But how do we try? Do we just mutter random words until something happens?" James said, obviously not believing that Remus' plan would work.

"That's almost correct. I think we need to find words that relate to what we are trying to do. Maybe in a different language, so it sounds cool. But then we just repeat them. A lot. You guys ready?"

Peter was practically bouncing in his seat with excitement. James and Sirius still looked skeptical, but they figured Remus was the smartest of the four and probably had a good idea of what would work. Besides, it wasn't like this would be dangerous.

They put the parchment between them and pulled out their wands. Remus was the most experienced, as he practiced everything his professors said nightly. The other three boys looked at their wands in dismay.

Sirius spoke up first. "Um, I think you should do the spells, Moony."

"Yeah, we can make up the words," James agreed.

Peter squeaked, "You're the best of all of us. We wouldn't want to mess the whole thing up."

Remus smiled. "Okay, I will take the foolish wand-waving. It seems to work for me. Now, you guys think of words that have to do with assigning. We need to get those footsteps hooked to a name."

Each boy sat back in his chair and focused. For five minutes, the only sounds were the chattering of students around them and the crackling of the fireplace. After another three minutes, Peter jumped up. "I've got it!" he shouted. "Assignamentos Feet! Try it, Moony, try it!"

James laughed and Sirius leaned forward to see what would happen. With an amused smile, Remus pointed his wand at the parchment and whispered the words. Nothing happened. No matter how many time the werewolf uttered Peter's words, the Map laid perfectly still upon the chairs.

"It's no use," Peter said miserably. "We'll just have to think of something else."

As the night wore on, the common room got less crowded. Slowly, people went up to bed, until the Marauders were the only ones left. They didn't mind, as now they wouldn't have to keep their voices down and the Map hidden.

"Maybe we should just try this again some other time," Sirius yawned.

Remus looked up sharply. "No. We want to finish this by summer. If we don't work on it consistently, then nothing will ever come of the Marauder's Map. It will just be a piece of parchment, laying in the bottom of a closet, still full of memories. We have to finish. Think of a few more spells. That's all we need. Just think!"

The others didn't even bother answering. They knew better than to argue when Remus was like this. It wouldn't get them anywhere. So they sat for another hour, the three boys dozing when they were supposed to think of something. Eventually, Remus stood up. He pointed his wand at the parchment for the last time that night, with a look of almost anger. "Ipsi Attribuerre!" The parchment jumped up, and then floated back down. "I've found one!" Remus shouted. The other three boys stood up, watching their friend. He repeated the words twice more before names started to appear. After one more repeat, each pair of footsteps (there were hundreds) had a name beside it, representing each person in the school at the given time.

"We've done it," James whispered. Everyone nodded, and then, without speaking, climbed the stairs and crawled into bed. Remus tucked the little Map into the box beneath his bed. The Marauder's Map was coming along nicely; they only had to figure out how to show the movements of people now.

James had only pretended to fall asleep when the other boys did. Sirius was the last to go, but when James heard his breathing slow, he quietly got out of bed. His shoes were lying near the door with everyone else's'; he padded over to them and slid them on. Then, he reached under his bed to grab his Invisibility Cloak.

The Cloak had been passed down throughout the Potter family generations. It started with Ignotus Peverell, who got the Cloak from a man named Death, as the story was told. James personally did not know who would name their son Death, but no matter. Ignotus then passed the Invisibility Cloak down to his son, who passed it to his son, and so on. Eventually, the Cloak was given to James' father. When James received his letter from Hogwarts, he was given the Cloak. And he planned to give it to his son when the child got his letter.

Slipping under the Cloak, James made sure he was completely covered, and therefore invisible, from head to foot. Then he slid out to the staircase leading to the common room.

The air was frigid, being the middle of the night. The fire had gone out about the same time that the Marauders had gone to bed. James was almost to the door when he thought he saw an oddly shaped shadow crossing the room. When he turned, nothing was there. _Pull it together, James. You just need some sleep,_ he told himself. The entrance swung open to let James out. As he walked away, he heard the Fat Lady (the portrait that guarded the Gryffindor tower) calling sleepily, "Who's there? You'd better reveal yourself!" Eventually, she gave up and fell back to sleep.

James descended one flight of stairs slowly, and then sped up on the next one. Finally, he reached the fifth floor, and then walked back up the stairs to the seventh floor. He arrived about ten minutes after he had set out.

This wasn't the first time James had come this way. Lately, he would sit in the unused seventh floor room for hours every night. It seemed to calm him in a way nothing else ever could. The room seemed to have some sort of magical properties, though James could never figure out. The walls were lined with bookshelves, filled to the brim with books. In the middle of the room, there was nothing except a lone mirror. It was toward this mirror that James walked straight away.

The mirror had a small paper at its feet. A slanted scrawl had scribbled the words _Mirror of Erised_. James could only assume this was the mirror's name. Above the glass read _Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi. _James had no idea about that one.

He liked to think the mirror was his and his alone. That no one else had discovered its properties. He even kept it from his friends when he could. It had seemed better that way when he had first stood in front of it.

The Mirror did not reflect a face. It showed something else, something James could not fathom. When James Potter stood in front of the Mirror of Erised, he saw himself, but holding hands with a beautiful redhead that could only be Lily Evans. Lily was cradling a tiny baby. The baby was clearly a boy, with scruffy black hair quite like James'. In fact, even as an infant, it was uncanny how much the child resembled James. The only visible difference was when the boy opened his eyes. They were a startling green, the exact shade as Lily's.

James had no idea what the vision meant. His mind told him that it meant he would end up dating Lily Evans one day, but his heart told him that it was just a fantasy. Still, it was comforting to just sit and watch the image, which, similar to all wizard photographs, moved. James smiled and waved out to himself as Lily beamed down at her son. She rocked back and forth slowly, and then reached over to grab James' hand. James smiled at his baby. Sometimes it grew to be too much for the real James to watch. It hurt to know that the vision would never happen. Still, he watched.

This night was no different. James stood in front of the mirror, and eventually switched to sitting on the floor. He stared at Lily, himself, and their baby until his eyes began to droop. Then he lay down, fingers touching the mirror, until he was on the brink of sleep. He didn't want to get up, because getting up would mean leaving the room. And leaving meant giving up. James never wanted to give up hope for Lily. He would always have a place for her, if she chose to take it.

Before he fell asleep in the strange room, James walked to the door and looked back sadly. Lily was waving at him, as the mirror-James was now holding the baby. James waved sadly bad, promising himself he'd return the following night. Then he slipped back into the hallway.

It was silent, empty. Even though nobody was around, and there was a slim chance of James actually seeing anyone, he threw the Cloak back over himself. The stairs were moving as they did in the day, but the pictures lining the walls were all asleep, whereas during the daytime hours, they would be awake and speaking to students. James was thankful for the peace, which allowed him to be lost in thought.

Eventually, he made it to the ground floor bathroom. It, too, was empty, like the rest of the school. At the late hour, though, James was not looking for company. He was looking for a bath.

The tub was large enough for one person to swim around in. James ran the water and went to lock the door. No matter how late it was, he wasn't taking any chances. Bubbles poured into the bathtub and floated in the air. James took off his Cloak and robes and then slipped into the water. This had also become a part of his nightly routine. The Mirror of Erised calmed him, but at the same time, excited him. The bath helped him calm down enough to go to bed.

After an hour, James was ready to finally make his way back to the Gryffindor dormitory. He was ready for sleep to engulf him, to swallow him whole. Before he could clamber out of the water, though, he heard a girlish chuckle. Whirling around, he saw a pale girl, almost too pale, sitting on top of the faucet.

She chuckled again, smiling slyly at the boy. "Go on, then. Get out."

"Myrtle!" James exclaimed, realizing why this girl was so pale. She was a Hogwarts ghost, one who died in a bathroom thirty years before. _How did she die in a bathroom? Toilet overflowed and drowned her? _James found himself wondering. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I come here often. I just enjoy the sights, if you know what I mean."

"You spy on boys often, do you? Well, I'm not getting out until you leave." However James acted with his friends, he would not willingly let a girl see him when he was completely bare.

"Not _that _ often, if you must know. I saw you enter and thought that we could have a

little…chat."

"Myrtle, I need to go back to the tower. My er- friends will be looking for me."

"I'm not stopping you. You can get out any time you fancy."

"If I promise to visit again tomorrow, and talk for a little while, will you please close you eyes so I can get dressed?" James found himself pleading.

"Oh, I suppose. You're no fun when you get whiney anyway," the ghost pouted.

"Well-then turn away."

Myrtle turned away and covered her eyes. She chuckled again, as the water splashed won from James' body. He rushed to get his towel and called, "And don't peek!" Another giggle.

Only when James was fully dried and dressed back in his robes did he allow Myrtle to turn around. After bidding her a good night, he sprinted up the stairs to the seventh floor, barely able to whisper the password to the Fat Lady. Reaching his bed, he threw on pajamas and tossed the Cloak underneath his bed. Then he curled up and fell fast asleep.

The morning dawned an hour later than usual, and the Marauders slept past normal breakfast time. Luckily, it was weekend, which meant the Great Hall would have food throughout the entire day. When James rolled out of bed, he had a feeling that the day was going to be bad. Nothing at all supported this feeling, yet it remained present while James got ready for the day. Breakfast was an informal affair, with slices of toast lining the tables. The four friends grabbed two slices each and walked outside onto the grounds. The air was freezing and clouds swirled above. A light breeze was blowing, making everything seem colder than it actually was. Someone had said it was supposed to snow that evening, and James had to agree, looking towards the sky.

There was little to be seen outside, except Lily Evans sitting with Severus Snape a few trees away. Snape was wearing a messed-up green Slytherin tie. It did not compliment his long, greasy, black hair. Lily didn't seem to mind, wearing a golden ribbon in her hair, which was glowing in the gray landscape. James couldn't stop staring. He felt anger bubbling up towards Snape. Finally, his chance came. Snape and Lily got up and began making their way towards the castle.

"Hey, Snivellus!" James called without thinking. The boy turned and glared at him.

"What do you want, Potter?" Lily had stopped also. Now they were both walking closer. When they stopped in front of the Marauders, James spoke again.

"What do you say we settle this? Once and for all."

"I don't have time for your foolish riddles, Potter. Either speak your mind or we are leaving."

Lily tugged on Snape's arm. "Come on, Sev. Don't listen to him. Let's just go back to the library for a while."

That did it for James. "A duel." His friends drew a sharp intake of breath. "Tonight at midnight. Unless you are a coward, of course," he sneered.

Severus Snape did not look worried. He smirked. "Fine, Potter. I hope you've been practicing. Macnair is my second. Who've you got?" Snape was referring to the wizard that would step in to finish the duel should Snape himself get hurt. He had chosen one of the biggest and scariest Slytherins around.

Lily was still protesting, but weakly. Everyone ignored her. "Sirius here will be my second. I obviously won't need one, though."

Snape scoffed. "We'll see about that, Potter. See you tonight. Let's go, Lily." And the pair walked towards the castle. James now understood his premonition from the morning. It wasn't shaping up to be a very good day at all.

The rest of the day was spent lounging outside, in which Sirius found it necessary to explain the rules of dueling, as if James hadn't memorized them since he was eight. James couldn't even remember eating dinner, but he assumed he must have. Nerves didn't bother him; he was worried about Lily. _Why had he challenged Snape? Lily would not be impressed as it was; now, she'd never like him! _

At ten minutes until midnight, James and Sirius bid Remus and Peter goodnight. The two boys were staying in the common room for the night, to avoid sparking suspicion among any fellow Gryffindors. Sirius and James were meeting Snape outside the trophy room. When they arrived, Snape was already there, but Macnair was missing.

"Where's your crony? Decided that you aren't dueling after all?"

"Shut it, Potter. He is on-"

He was interrupted by a strange meow and some wheezing. Then, footsteps ran around the corner. _Where's the Marauder's Map when you need it?_ thought James bitterly. "I've got you now!"

The three boys were looking into the eyes of Argus Filch, the grumpy old Hogwarts caretaker.

James looked sideways at Sirius. Sirius could tell what he was thinking. Should we run? He shook his head slightly, just enough for James to see but not enough for Snape.

"Students out of bed, eh? You're mine, now. Follow me, please," the caretaker snarled. He had scraggly gray hair that looked like it hadn't been washed in years. His eyes were sunken in, and wrinkles had eaten his face. His hands were gnarled, and it was hard to eve imagine that this man had been young, or even kind. The only time that students saw the good side of him was when he saw his cat.

Mrs. Norris followed him everywhere, and helped him catch troublemaking students. Somehow, when she meowed and walked away from the crime scene, she returned with Filch less than a minute later. Nobody knew how, because Filch had no magic. It was widely known in the school, spread by James and Sirius. He was a Squib, a person born to magical parents who had no sort of magical ability themselves. Filch was sensitive about the subject, and threatened any student that whispered the word around him. He claimed to have chains still hanging and polished in his office, ready to hang someone by their toes from the ceiling. Apparently, that was common when he was a child.

James and Sirius looked pointedly at Snape, beckoning him forward. "I'm not going in front of you, Potter," he hissed, drawing his wand.

Sirius stepped in front of his best friend. "Too scared to? Go on, or we'll-"

"Come one, all three of you! You had better be right behind me or I'll call the headmaster!" Filch was already halfway down the long corridor. The three boys were not worried about many things at Hogwarts, but Albus Dumbledore was most definitely one of them. They all looked at each other and then took off, sprinting after the old caretaker. James tried to trip Snape as they ran, but only managed to almost trip himself. He stumbled and caught himself, flailing his arms around. The three dark-haired boys had caught up to Filch, who was just entering into his office.

James and Sirius had been in here before, though they didn't think Snape had. Severus Snape was a good boy, at least as far as anyone could tell. He did his work, played nicely with other students, and read in all his spare time. Sure, he was a little shady, but that could be expected from a neglected fourteen-year-old boy. He had friends, one of which was the brightest witch of her age, Lily Evans. He was expected to do great things by his professors. What they didn't know, though, is what he did when no adults were around.

Snape would get bullied, but he would also bully right back. Sometimes he started the fights, just because he wanted to. He would cause things pain, little animals he had found outside. He hung around with the wrong sort of people. Even Lily grew worried for him. But still, the fact remained that, according to all records, Snape had never gotten into trouble. That made this the first time, and he absolutely hated it.

Argus Filch's office was dark, for one. And the lights were on. A tiny bulb glowed in one corner, giving enough light to barely see around. There was a moldy desk set against the wall, with a creaky wooden chair behind it. A filing cabinet sat in the corner. James knew what was in there. Hundreds of records of all of the troublemakers of Hogwarts, from all the years Filch had been giving discipline. James and Sirius each had their own folder. Three once-plush chairs were facing the desk. They were stained and discolored from age. Half of the stuffing was torn out. When James looked into the back corner, there really were chains hanging from the ceiling. They were the cleanest things in the room, even though James had bathed just last night. Thankfully, Dumbledore had not yet given Filch permission to give physical punishment. He made it obvious how much he wanted to.

"Sit. And be quiet!" for Sirius had been about to snap at Snape. James took the middle seat, Sirius on his left. He looked hard at Snape, daring him to sit on his right. Snape smiled innocently, and then deposited himself in the poor chair.

"All right. What have we here? Three young boys arguing in the corridor after curfew? None of you anywhere close to your dormitories. And two of the boys are Potter and Black. Never did much care for them," Filch muttered as an afterthought. Snape stifled his snort of laughter and stared straight ahead as Sirius and James stared at him.

"Sir, we can explain. Snivellus here-"

"QUIET! I will not have you talking when it is my turn! Now," he said, smoothing down his nightshirt. "We have some business to take of. I think detention is in store. Do not think for a minute that I wouldn't hang you by your toes if the headmaster would let me. The chains are ready, oh so ready to hold flesh again. But no bother; this will work as well."

James smirked a bit at Sirius as Filch talked. It was unlikely that he could even get them into the chains if he was allowed. Three wizards against a Squib. He didn't stand a chance.

"I think Professor McGonagall needed a bit of help in her office cleaning. Potter, you can help her for three nights this week. She'll probably have you work on your poor excuse of magic while you are there. And-"

"At least I have some!" James sneered.

"QUIET!" Filch shouted once more, his eyes bulging. "You will not talk back to me in my own office! Let's make that four nights, then. Careful, boy, or I'll schedule it during Quidditch," he added when James was about to protest. Snape couldn't contain his laughter any longer. The mirth burst out of him, filling the empty room. An angry Filch smacked his hand on his desk, furious with the lack of respect. Snape's laughter stopped, leaving the room cold and solemn once more.

Filch leaned closer to the greasy-haired boy and whispered, just loud enough for the others to hear, "You, boy, can help him. Four nights this week. Professor McGonagall. She would like you to report to her office after dinner each day." He turned to Sirius, who had just been foolishly hoping he'd be let off with a warning. Detentions got a bit boring after three years of serving them. "You can help me. I want you here for three days, starting tomorrow after the feast. I'll find some, er, unusual work that you might enjoy."

The three boys groaned at their luck. Realizing that he and Snape had just agreed in their dislike of Filch, they both scowled and looked in opposite directions.

"Let me just write this little event down and you can be on your way," Filch said, suddenly extremely pleased. He grabbed three cards from his drawer and wrote. James watched as each name went down and then the offence: Dueling each other past curfew and disrupting the general peace of the school. Even though no dueling had actually occurred, James knew better than to speak up. Suddenly, Filch looked up and his eyes found Snape's. "Mrs. Norris tell me that you were expecting someone else. Is that true, boy?"

Snape stared calmly back. "No, sir. My friend was going to come, but then thought better of it since it was after curfew. I told him it was fine, as I didn't want him getting into trouble if we were caught, which your wise little cat saw to."

"Don't think your flattery will get you anywhere," Filch barked, though he looked thrilled. His hand crept up to pet Mrs. Norris, who had been sitting on the corner of his desk watching him write. She purred at the sudden affection, all the while staring at the boys.

Ten minutes later, the cards were done and Filch turned to the filing cabinet. He tossed Snape's record into the folder labeled Slytherin, and then found James' and Sirius' folders. Finally, he faced the boys. "You are free to go. I'd better not catch you again or there will be serious punishment the next time."

James and Sirius didn't need to be told twice to leave Filch's office. They scrambled out of their chairs and raced each other to the door. They looked back to tease Snape one last time, but were surprised to see him already jogging down the hall. James shrugged before whispering, "Maybe next time, then."

They trudged back up the stairs to their common room. It was a far walk, and a quiet one, as nobody wanted to wake the portraits, which would then alert Filch. Or worse, the headmaster.

The Fat Lady was asleep and Sirius rapped on her frame three times before she woke up. After yelling at them for five minutes about how it was late, after curfew, and that they had woke her up, she let them in. She slammed shut behind them, narrowly missing James' shoelace.

The common room was deserted, all the students having gone to bed hours ago. It was now well past midnight. Even the fire in the grate had gone out. James looked at his best friend as they walked towards their beds. "That was a close one," he sighed in relief.

"No, it was not close, Prongs. We have detention. And I have it with Filch himself. You know he won't let me use magic around him! At least next time, if you are going to drag me into something, make it fun," Sirius grumbled. He opened the door and slipped in, leaving James staring after him.

When James finally made it into the room, Sirius was already curled up in bed. James smiled slightly as he looked around at his friends, releasing for the first time how lucky he was. Then, he too went to sleep.

Sunday evening, Sirius came back from Filch's office, the fury rolling off of him in waves. "Filch made me organize the entire filing cabinet! And it's not as small as it looks! The thing is enchanted to be bigger on the inside! I am not even finished with the 1720's yet!"

Remus chuckled at that and watched his friend stomp around, frightening first years out of their chairs. Nothing anyone said would calm him down so everyone just left him alone.

The next morning started with Arithmancy. Remus would have an entire class without his friends. In fact, he would have it with only three other people: a shy Hufflepuff, a cocky Ravenclaw, and Lily Evans. Today was supposed to be a day when Professor Vincent Burnaby droned on and on, expecting his class of four to take notes. Fortunately, when Remus arrived, the professor had called in sick. The poor little nurse from upstairs had to fill in for the day.

"Okay, I suppose that is all of you, no? I was told there were only four. Alright, first thing's first. Professor Burnaby is not feeling well, so he will not be here today. Hopefully, by tomorrow he will feel better." She bustled about behind the desk, looking for any notes to tell her what to go over. "Well, I can't find any record of what you have been learning. Can anyone tell me what you were studying?"

The Ravenclaw boy raised his hand. The nurse nodded for him to answer. "Well, ma'am, we were studying a very complex number pattern and discussing what it meant for the future. Nothing that an amateur could really grasp," he said, as if the word _amateur_ was the word insult anyone could ever give.

Either way, the nurse looked offended. She nodded once and then sat down in the chair at the desk, glancing once at Remus. "Well, then, I suppose today will be your day off, then, won't it?"

Even though Remus felt bad about the way it was accomplished, he was secretly glad that they didn't have to work that day. One look at Lily and he could tell that she was relieved, too. They had taken so many notes last week that the four students' thumbs were bruised from holding onto their quills too tightly.

The day had been long already, and Remus had only been up for two hours of it. He supposed it was because Christmas holidays were in a month. Any day that they spent learning was bound to be a bore.

"Did you understand the homework better? Did my notes help?" Lily had come to sit by him.

He turned and smiled at her. "Yes, a lot. Thank you again for letting me borrow them. Let me get them for you," Remus reached down and rifled through his bag, finally emerging with Lily's neatly written notebook.

"Thanks," she took it from him and placed it in her own bag. "If you need any more help, which I doubt you will, just tell me. Maybe we can study together some time."

"Sure, as long as it's not during a Quidditch match. James made us promise to come to each one that he is in." Too late, Remus realized he had said the wrong thing.

"What do you see in him? He's not attractive at all and he is an arrogant toe rag!" the redhead exclaimed, all kindness gone. Remus suspected that she would have left if they were not in the middle of a class.

He hurried to cover his mistake. "He's not so bad, you know."

"Not so bad? He bullies anyone he can get his hands on! He ruffles his hair because he thinks it makes him look cool! He carries that stupid Snitch around just to show off! How is that 'not so bad'?"

"Lily, I didn't say he was perfect. I think he is as foolish as you say when he ruffles his hair and carries the Snitch." Remus tried to carefully steer the conversation away from the bullying part. "But the truth is, it's a long story. Would you, Lily Evans, like to hear why Remus Lupin is friends with the arrogant toe rag James Potter?"

He could tell that, against her better self, Lily was cracking. After what looked like a hard battle with herself, she finally looked back at him. "Fine. Yes, I would like to hear the story of you two."

Remus personally took this as a really good sign, because one, she was displaying some interest in his friend. Also, she had not insulted James in their conversation about him for a minute straight. "Alright, here goes. Once upon a time, there was a large castle way out in the English countryside. A little boy walked by the castle every day and-. Wait a second. Sorry, Lily, that's the one about me and Sirius. It seems that I cannot remember how I met dear James." She hit him on the arm with a textbook. "Ow! Alright, alright! So I was lonely as a boy. I didn't really have friends, because the other children thought I was weird. Their mothers told them to stay away and they listened. Because of that, I was desperate for companionship. My mum and dad tried to spend time with me, but they had to work. Both had two jobs because the Diagon Alley shops weren't paying as much as usual. I was often home alone.

"Finally, on my eleventh birthday, I received a letter by an owl. I had never before gotten my own owl mail, so it was an exciting experience. Right away my dad sent word back to Hogwarts, telling them of my acceptance. My parents were so proud of me, even though I had shown signs of magic since I was three. On September first, I boarded the Hogwarts Express, determined to start my new life and make my parents proud.

"I sat down on the train alone, not really knowing anyone well enough to sit by. You see, my parents hadn't had time to invite other wizard families over for dinner. Eventually, two boys who looked about my age walked in. One immediately held out his hand for me to shake, introducing himself as James Potter. The other, he said, was Sirius Black. I said hello and we talked for a few minutes. Then we just sat in silence. Later, we moved cars. I think you were there then. Other than that, I can't remember the train ride much. I think I was just so ecstatic to have people around me for once.

"At the Sorting Ceremony, we were sorted into the same house. The other Gryffindors accepted us, and that night, showed us where we were to sleep. It was us three and another little boy, Peter. Once it hit me that we would be spending a lot of time together, I decided to try harder at being friends. James and Sirius graciously accepted me, and we became the unbreakable trio. Later, we let in little Peter Pettigrew, for various reasons. Everything that happened to one of us happened to all of us. It was exhilarating to think of how close I had become with these three boys. We shared everything, from secrets to trouble.

"In my second year I told them my biggest secret yet. I was afraid they would leave me, not only for the content, but for lying for the whole first year of our friendship. They definitely did not do that. In fact, the boys did the exact opposite. They figured out ways to help me. My secret brought us even closer than before, even closer than I have read is healthy. But I wouldn't go back on it now. James befriended me when no one else would. He was, in all aspects of the word, my very first friend. It would be foolish to break that bond."

At the end of his tale, Remus leaned back in his chair. It had felt so good to get that story off his chest. For a long time he had wondered about James. They _were_ best friends, but Remus truly did not fancy his bullying habits.

Lily looked Remus in the eyes. "That's an incredible story. You have a way with words, you know? I want to let you know that while I don't like him more, you might've just helped me hate him less."

Both students laughed, loud and long enough for everyone in the classroom to look at them.

"Okay class. I guess that is about it for the morning. Enjoy the rest of your day. You may go."

Remus hopped out of his desk and leaned down to grab his bag. As he was straightening back up, a soft hand touched his arm. "Thanks," Lily whispered.

He turned around and grinned widely at her. "No, thank you for listening." They both walked out of the classroom, talking and laughing all the way to their next class. When they entered the Charms classroom, they split up, letting Lily go first and Remus waiting before entering. When he sat down next to Peter, he smiled slightly to himself. The day wasn't such a bore after all.

James' detentions weren't much better than Sirius'. He had to put up with Snape for three hours on Monday, until McGonagall let them go. Tuesday's dinner couldn't even cheer him up, though there was pudding for dessert. Afterwards, he and Sirius bid their goodbyes to Remus and Peter, who were off to the common room. At the staircase, the friends themselves split, one down the corridor to Filch's and one upstairs to McGonagall's office.

Her door was open, a sign for James to just walk in. He did so, about to shut it so that Snape couldn't enter, but then saw the boy sitting in a chair already.

McGonagall looked up as James walked in. "Please shut the door, Mr. Potter." He walked back to close the door. "Alright, now this is the second night of your four. For this one, we will work on both your magical skills with Transfiguration, and you will be checking my supply stocks. I'm very disappointed in both of you for dueling at midnight, for dueling at all! To think, one from my own house! I suppose we are just lucky Filch did not think about taking points."

"Just plum lucky, aren't we?" James muttered under his breath.

Unfortunately for him, McGonagall heard him. "You are, Potter! Don't start that attitude with me or I will take points! Now both of you, stand up and meet me in my classroom in five minutes. No bickering, or I shall find out."

James led the way, not in the mood for more arguments or points taken. He glared at Snape whenever the other boy looked at him. Otherwise, they left each other alone.

The classroom was empty, which made sense considering the hour. There were desks around the room, in their ordinary spots. The very front desk, facing the students' desks, held a cage full of chattering mice. They were squirming and running over each other, their little white tails racing along behind them. James thought of Peter immediately, and then stifled hid laugh with a cough. Peter would definitely not fancy being compared to the adorable tiny creatures.

As Minerva McGonagall walked in, she swished her wand. All of the desks flew to the sides of the room, leaving a large opening in the middle. It was still a surprise to James whenever he saw a full wizard demonstrate some of his powers. His looked meager compared to theirs.

"I would like each of you to come up and get a mouse. Then take it back to a spot on the floor and sit. You don't get desks tonight."

James got to the cage first, cutting in front of Snape triumphantly. McGonagall scowled at him. "Be careful, Mr. Potter. Otherwise I will have you two doing trust exercises tomorrow night." He quickly wiped the sneer off his face and held up his hands, cupped to form a sort of bowl. The professor reached into the wire cage and grabbed a small mouse that was sitting completely still. James was thankful; if he had to work with any mice at all, he'd prefer it be a lazy one. When placed in his hand, the mouse gazed up at James with large solemn eyes.

McGonagall then took a mouse that was calmly staring at each of his siblings and handed it to Snape. For some reason, the cute mice seemed to relax both boys. They didn't even try to trip each other as they sat down, closer than they would have usually preferred. James decided to put his little mouse down so it could run around and allow James to take out his wand. When he did, though, the mouse scampered away, losing all of his laziness from a moment before. As James darted after him, McGonagall shouted an indistinguishable spell, in which the runaway rodent froze and fell over.

"You killed it? James asked the middle-aged woman, appalled.

"Of course I didn't, Potter. He's frozen, for about another minute. So is yours, Mr. Snape. Be more careful and hold onto them next time."

James realized that Snape's mouse had escaped too, and was now laying about three feet from James'. Both boys scooped them up and crawled back to their places.

"Now, I want you to change the mouse into a hamster. They are more similar than other changes we could do, and it should not be terribly difficult. Just use the wand movement that I use. Ready? And…now!" McGonagall pointed her wand at one mouse that was sitting in the cage. She made a circular motion and it instantly turned into a fluffy hamster, with gray and white fur. "That is all, now please begin your work."

James looked over at Snape, who was looking at him. He thought, for an odd second, that Snape resembled Sirius just a bit, enough though to make you do a double take if you weren't focused enough. Then, James thought of the real Sirius, the one who would no doubt be filing endless stacks of record cards. If he was in any other detention with any other professor, James would take out the enchanted mirror and talk to Sirius for a while. As it was, he felt a twinge of guilt, along with amusement, at the thought of Sirius trying to covertly yell into a seemingly-ordinary mirror, whilst trying to hide from Filch.

Both boys caught themselves looking at each other for too long without some sort of glare and quickly looked away. James looked toward his mouse, who was nestled in his palm once more. Then, he picked up his wand and pointed it at it. A circular motion and…nothing. Not so much as a twitch from the little rodent. Except, if he squinted, James swore he could see a bit of gray fur dotting the white.

Snape wasn't having luck, either. His mouse was running around, squealing in terror, in the small pen Snape had made with his legs. James copied him, and then let his mouse go. It looked at him sleepily before curling up on the stone floor. James pointed the wand, made the correct motion, and this time, the mouse changed. Well, somewhat. It seemed to be half-mouse and half-hamster, stuck in some sort of in-between period. The ears had shrunk and the fur had grown longer in some places, making it look patchy and ill. The tail was about half the size of a usual mouse tail. Even though all of this had just happened, the rodent was still curled up, sleeping soundly. James only wished that it had been lazy before, too.

McGonagall looked over and saw the odd phenomenon, then glanced toward Snape, whose mouse was strangely in the same position. "Go ahead and try it again, boys. Change them all the way next time."

James was pleased, as he had thought that somehow McGonagall would Transfigure the mice-hamsters back into full mice, leaving him to have to start over. As it was, he pointed one last time and then, sitting in front of him, was a hamster identical to the one McGonagall had created. "It appears that one of you has a gift for Transfiguration. Or perhaps both. Either way, well done. Now please do it once more, and I will let you leave for the night."

James nodded slightly at Snape, acknowledging that he had better do it correctly this time so that they could both leave. Their hamsters turned back to mice from a flick of the professor's wand. James' mouse was still sleeping, a feat that he was sure not even Sirius could manage. This time, to be absolutely sure that nothing would go wrong, James cupped the mouse in his hand. Snape did the exact same. Simultaneously, they waved their wands, and simultaneously, they cried out.

Instead of hitting the mice, their spells had hit the boys' hands that had been holding the rodents. Because they had not meant to Transfigure their skin, the spell had gone horribly wrong. Each hand now had gray fur in patches along the skin. They both had a stubby tail sticking out from the palm. Weirdly enough, there weren't ears. James thought that if his hand had to resemble a hamster, it ought to have ears.

McGonagall waved them over. "Good. Well done. Before I came in, I charmed your mice. They would mimic each other, so that everything one did would happen to the other. Similarly, because you each handled the mice, the charm came off onto you. You were doing things at the same time, even though you hadn't communicated what you were going to do. Because of that, I am not sure who Transfigured their mouse into a hamster first. It may have been both of you at the same time. I could not tell who seemed to be leading. But no matter, because since one of you messed up, both did. Not to worry, I can fix that in an instant. No need to blame one another, either. We will never know who did what, and if you argue about it, then I will deduct points from both of your houses."

James groaned. "But Professor! Why did you do this to us?" He was just comprehending the fact that he and Snape had been charmed to do identical things. "And is it permanent?"

"Nonsense, Potter. Right after I fix this mishap, the charm will be gone. Before I do that, though, I need your mice, please." The boys put them into the cage and then held up their hands.

"Please, Professor McGonagall, fix this," Snape pleaded. McGonagall nodded once and tapped his hand. It cleared up, turning into the long-fingered hand from before. James was pleased to see that his did not turn when Snape's did, meaning that the charm was done.

After the professor tapped his palm, she smiled kindly. "Thank you boys for coming today. I will see you tomorrow evening."

James rushed to the door, and then waited for the slower Snape to make his departure. "Listen, Snivellus, not a word about this. Ever," he snarled as the boy emerged.

Snape looked offended. "Sorry, Potter, but my life does not revolve around gloating that I was mimicking James Potter." He walked away, leaving James to ponder again what Lily Evans saw in him.

As the Christmas holidays approached, the students of Hogwarts became lazier and readier for the holidays. There was one last Quidditch game before everyone went home. Professors were also planning their last lessons and their midterms. Nobody was looking forward to that.

After their last detention with McGonagall, Snape and James tried to avoid each other even more than usual, afraid of what the other might reveal about that night. Sirius and James vowed to stay out of trouble until after the holidays. Or, at least, they had vowed to not get caught. Detentions kept getting worse every year, it seemed.

Finally, the weeks got down to only one more before Christmas holidays. James would have his last Quidditch game on the Friday night, a change due to students leaving. The final practice would be Wednesday night, followed by the Astronomy midterm. James would complete it with Sirius and Remus; Peter didn't have to take it this year. He had been hurt the previous week when Sirius and James tried a new spell on him. Needless to say, it turned out horribly. The next morning, all students who were not spending their break at the castle would be heading home. They would return three weeks later.

Quidditch was a quiet affair on Wednesday. The team was good; Eaton thought they deserved a break. He let them practice on their own for half an hour and then scrimmage. That in itself was interesting as each team had one Chaser, one Beater, and one Keeper. The Chasers rotated and James just played for both sides at once. After an hour of doing that, Eaton let them go back to school. James immediately started toward the Gryffindor common room to meet his friends.

Remus was sitting at a table next to the window. He had two textbooks poem, one for holiday homework and one for studying for tonight's exam. Nobody knew what would be on it, but from previous years, they could assume that they would have to identify at least three constellations. Usually they weren't too hard, but this was the fourth year now. If James had learned anything through the years, it was that exams got harder as the students progressed through the years. He personally did not agree with this progression, but his professors seemed to care deeply about it.

"You do know, Moony, that whatever you do, you won't fail, right?" He walked over to his friend, realizing that Sirius was not around (Peter was still in the infirmary).

"Yes, but James, I'd still like to do _well_, not just _pass_. Why don't you quiz me?"

After James apparently pronounced names wrong and asked all the worst questions, Remus snatched his book back impatiently. "Thanks, Prongs, but I think I've got it from here," he said awkwardly.

James could tell when he wasn't wanted (he got the same treatment from a certain redhead often enough) and he shrugged and walked to the dormitory. Sirius wasn't there either, which was odd for him. He usually laid around all day until something important enough to get him up happened. But he wasn't there, James noticed with a sigh. He figured that his best friend could cheer him up like no other before an exam.

James must've fallen asleep, because soon he was being shaken awake by Remus, staring down at him, urgency in his eyes.

"James, we have to go! The exam will start in ten minutes and we still have to get to the Astronomy tower! Get _up_!"

James groaned his disagreement with having to get up, but did so all the same. Astronomy exams usually took place at midnight. He and Remus raced out of the common room and up the stairs. They kept running, their breath getting more ragged with each upward step. Finally, they emerged onto the landing, panting, but satisfied.

Remus smiled goofily at his best friend and then took his place at an open telescope. James made to stand next to him at the only other unoccupied telescope. He saw Lily across the open area and almost waved, before his brain registered (for the millionth time) that they weren't friends. It seemed to hurt more each time the realization hit, but he would never give up. Right after they prepared their telescopes, Professor Mayshore announced the start of the exam. Only after looking around again did James see Sirius, who was standing off at his own telescope, already working. James began.

The exam paper that had been sitting at each area was covered with writing on both sides. Tiny writing with large blanks. As James squinted, he saw it was much harder than last year's. But it was actually only ten questions, fill in the blank.

The first question read _Which star is the third brightest in the sky and whose name means the foot of the centaur?_ James stared blankly and looked around. Each question required an answer and a drawing once they found what they needed through the telescope. He didn't see anyone else having a problem, except for maybe Sirius, who was just sitting there, swiveling his telescope around aimlessly. James chuckled quietly and turned back to his own work. He decided on Canopus and began searching the skies for a bright star. When he finally found one that he deemed the third brightest that he could see, James copied it down onto the paper. A sideways glance showed him that Remus was already halfway through. James didn't know how that boy did it.

The next question read, _What is one of the most common constellations (May be more than one correct answer)? _James immediately thought of the Big Dipper and wrote the name. The next problem amounted to the fact that try as he might, James could find the Big Dipper no matter where he looked. He turned the scope and looked behind him. Finally, he drew what looked like a ladle with what he hoped was the right number of stars. Then on to the next question.

By the time James was on question number five, Professor Mayshore called halfway time. They would have another half hour to test and then head back to dormitories. Lily had already turned her exam in, and Remus was just reviewing his paper. Unfortunately for the Gryffindors, Astronomy was with the Ravenclaws, who had already mostly turned their exams in. Now they sat in clusters on the tower and whispered, some quietly and some not so much.

James almost laughed out loud when he read number eight. It read, _Which star is the brightest star in the sky and is also known as the Dog Star?_ James ended up chuckling quietly and writing _Sirius_ in the blank. He easily picked out the star and scribbled a quick drawing down.

"Time!" Professor Mayshore called. The students who had been finished for the last hour sighed in relief, finally able to go to bed. "Thank you all for taking my midterm. I will hand these out after the holidays. Enjoy your break!" she called.

James caught Sirius' attention and waved him over. "Moony! Are you ready to go downstairs or not?" for Remus had been staring dreamily into the sky, particularly at the moon, which was half weaned.

"Isn't it lovely? How one simple thing can change so many lives within its monthly course?" Remus' voice had gone sappy.

"Moony! Snap out of it. If you want to be in love with the moon, you can, but do it in the dorm. It's too cold up here," Sirius complained.

"Fine, we can go," Remus consented, his voice still a little wistful. James and Sirius walked on either side of him as they made their way down the stairs towards the Gryffindor tower.

"Hey, Padfoot! Almost forgot, how did you like question eight?" James called across the werewolf he was supporting.

Sirius poked his head out in front, as well. "Loved it. Seems fitting, doesn't it? At least I know I got one question right, though," he said, suddenly serious. "Wonder if that grade will count as anything major. I couldn't even find half of the stars that I had written in."

"Me neither, mate. Don't worry about that. I possibly got two correct, if the Big Dipper counted and if I drew it right," James mused aloud.

Remus seemed to snap out of his reverie and stood a bit straighter. "I thought it was pretty simple, honestly. Except I probably missed a few because Lily finished first. She wouldn't have missed any questions."

Sirius hadn't paid much attention after the word _simple_ came out of Remus' mouth. He was still gaping when his friend finished speaking. "Simple? Remus, that was the hardest exam I've ever had the misfortune of taking! I can't believe that you thought of it as being simple!"

"Well, mate, if you had studied, or even showed up to every lesson, you wouldn't thought it was that difficult!" Remus protested.

"I wouldn't have had any easier of a time! James made sure to be at each and every lesson! And he even leafed through the textbook before the exam! He doesn't think it was any easier than it did. I swear, it's just you, mate. You probably have some creepy Muggle technology inside your head."

"Oh, would you shut it, Sirius? You know that Muggle technology doesn't work at Hogwarts. I've only told you a hundred times by now. Thanks for listening before."

"Whatever. You did fine, and you know it. We probably failed it, or nearly did. Hopefully we won't opt to take Astronomy next year. I would hate to take the O.W.L. exam for it." Sirius concluded.

James, who had been silent after the mention of Lily's name, began to nod vigorously. "Definitely. I don't want to be up at midnight any more that I have to. It's so miserable having to wake up for Herbology after only a few hours of sleep."

"I wish we wouldn't even have to go to school. We could just quit now and-" Sirius was cut off.

"Don't say that!" Remus scolded. "If you want to be a full wizard, you have to complete your school years! It would be-"

This time, Sirius cut Remus off. "Yeah, yeah. I wasn't being serious, Moony. I simply don't want to have to _be_ at school, in a classroom. I don't mind learning." James nodded again and Remus seemed satisfied, at least enough to not feel the need to talk.

As had become usual for the Marauders, the Gryffindor common room was empty when they arrived. James didn't even wait for his friends. He went upstairs and collapsed into his bed.

If Sirius had thought Astronomy was difficult, he hadn't even attempted Transfiguration yet. It took him the whole hour to try to change a mouse into a hamster. McGonagall had decided to challenge her fourth years greatly this midterm. Somehow, though, James managed to Transfigure his mouse right away. Sirius pondered that for a while, wasting more time than was necessary. He didn't want his best friend to be holding out on him all of a sudden.

History of Magic was the hardest for all the students, except Lily Evans and Remus Lupin. They had taken good notes throughout Professor Binns' lessons. Everyone else tended to sleep as he droned on. Binns happened to be a ghost, the only ghost professor in the school. Legend had it that he had died one night and then got up to teach as usual the next morning, simply leaving his body behind. In any case, he was as boring as the dead, in Sirius' opinion.

Potions was not as hard as some of the midterms. They had to create half of the Draught of Living Death within half an hour. Since the first time they had tried to make the potion, Slughorn had them practice at least once a week. All of the students could get at least halfway there. Lily had completed a perfect potion on her second attempt; therefore, on the midterm, Slughorn gave her extra points for the full potion.

The easiest exam by far was Herbology. All the students had to do was repot a Mandrake. They had done this in their second year. Professor Pott had been sick for midterms and had a substitute fill in, subsequently making the exam uncomplicated. The only difficult part was the variety of ages. Each student was given a Mandrake in its pot and a pot for replanting. Some of the Mandrakes were young, still babies. They would scream and cry, kick and wiggle about, but other than that, they were not hard to repot. The teenagers were the most difficult. They could be found in another Mandrake's pot often enough, or partying in a corner. When picked up, they would hold onto their friend with strength that should've been impossible for a plant. Most adults were mellow and enjoyed the repotting process. They would grab onto a student's arm when picked up, hugging it and smiling. Then they would immediately let go and snuggle deep into the soil as it rained upon them. The elderly did absolutely nothing and the young adults would often act as a teenager.

James lucked out and got an infant, securing a top grade. He picked it up with earmuffs on and stuffed it into another pot. Sirius got an elderly Mandrake, which deeply satisfied him. A top grade would definitely be good to send home to his family. Remus received a pot with an adult. It clung to him, in an almost endearing way, and then allowed itself to be repotted. Poor Peter was still in the infirmary and wouldn't be taking any of the exams at all.

Lily Evans was the only person in the Marauders' class that was unfortunate enough to have the task of repotting a teenage Mandrake. As soon as she unearthed it, she had to deal with two Mandrakes, clinging onto each other for dear life. Sirius caught James staring at her, but he didn't tease him yet, as the whole class was watching to see what the witch would do next.

What she did do next surprised everyone, even the substitute. Lily Evans put the Mandrakes on the tabletop and bent down until she was eye level with them. She whispered softly, to where the class had to strain their ears to catch the words.

"I know you don't want to leave each other," she said, unbelievably gentle. "But I need to do this for my class. After I repot both of you, I will put you back, okay? I promise."

The Mandrake closest to her stuck out its pinky, securing the deal. Lily laughed and wrapped her pinky around the tiny one. "Okay," she whispered.

The Mandrakes broke apart, allowing her to repot them separately. Once she had finished, the class cheered before leaving for lunch.

Charms was a fun exam. Students were required to cast an amusement charm on their partners. James had cast his a little too strongly, leaving Sirius hysterically laughing for three hours afterwards.

The other exams were as they normally were. Divination was the exact same as last year, and Sirius just stated the same things that he could not, for the life of him, see in the crystal orb. Defense Against the Dark Arts was a joke. No professor could keep the job for more than a year, leaving the students very far behind in their studies. Sirius had to simply tell the difference between a werewolf, an Animagus, and a normal dog. Remus got a kick out of that exam, and even Peter seemed upset when his friends told him what he had missed. "I could've passed that one for sure!" he complained.

With Friday evening came the last Quidditch match before Christmas holidays. James seemed nervous, though he said nerves didn't affect him. He picked at his toast until just crumbs were left on his plate. What didn't help was the news that Remus' friend Alice brought to the dinner table.

"Somebody has been arrested for using the Dark Arts!" she panted after sprinting towards the Marauders. Peter was finally out of the infirmary and decided to accompany his friends to the match.

"Alice, slow down. Say that again," Remus said gently, looking at his friends apologetically.

"My mum sent the Daily Prophet from yesterday. It just arrived not ten minutes ago. The front page has an article about how that man, Voldemort, is gaining followers. They are calling themselves Death Eaters. And, get this, two were arrested on Wednesday morning. The Ministry of Magic tracked them down and threw them in Azkaban for twelve years a piece! The Minister himself went to talk to them that evening, but neither would say anything on Voldemort's location. Or plans. They refused to talk. The Prophet also said that they believe his next move is going to be to try and attack more Muggles. They say that they will have to just wait and look for any suspicious stories, because they don't have any idea on his whereabouts!" Alice finished, obviously pleased with herself. James actually quite liked Alice; she was a pretty girl who was friendly to everyone and sweet. She'd stand up for any student that needed it. James liked to think of her as a true Gryffindor.

Remus exchanged a nervous look with Sirius before turning back to the petit girl. "All of this was in the Prophet? "

"Yep, right here!" she slid the paper towards him.

Sirius watched his friend scan the article and nod grimly. "Thanks, Alice. I guess we will all have to wait and see. Hey, would you like to sit with us at the Quidditch match tonight?"

She beamed. "Sure! Can I bring Frank along?"

"Of course," Remus said, and she flounced out of the Great Hall.

"So Voldemort is gaining supporters. Crazy that he has been able to avoid the Ministry for so long. They'll catch him; they always do," Remus mused, unknowingly calming all of his friends just a bit. "But why haven't I been getting the Daily Prophet? I hope they haven't cancelled my subscription! I'll send them an owl over the holidays, I suppose."

The Marauders headed outside towards the Quidditch pitch. Night had already fallen, leaving the golden stars and the pale moon floating in the dark sky. James left them to meet his team and prepare. Gryffindor was in the lead, but they needed this win against Hufflepuff to get farther ahead. Ravenclaw was pulling close behind them, having won their match against Hufflepuff already.

Peter ran off to get butterbeer from their dorm. As Remus and Sirius stood waiting in the bleachers, they heard voices. "My mum has already told me what she wants from me. I'm joining him right after I finish school here." They were coming from below Sirius' feet. He and Remus scrambled down to put their ears next to the crack. Somehow, they sounded oddly familiar, though Sirius couldn't place the voices.

"But how are you going to join the Dark Lord? He won't want just anyone, much less someone our age." The second voice was higher than the first.

"I'm not sure about anyone else, but I have an entire family of supporters. My mum and dad aren't Death Eaters, not exactly, but they agree with what he says." Sirius jerked his head up as Remus did the same. The realization dawned on their faces as the color drained out. Both knew know what the conversation below was about. "My cousin and her new husband are very close to him, they say. He will probably personally request my support." That voice was very pompous and reminded Sirius of his brother.

"Do you think, maybe, that you, Reg-"

"Don't say it!" the first voice hissed. "I'm sure enough people could hear us if they wished."

And Sirius did not wish to listen anymore, because he had finally placed one of the voices. Without telling Remus what he was doing, he raced down the bleachers, finally finding the entrance to below. But no matter how hard he looked, even lighting the tip of his wand to search, he found no one. Dejected, he made his way back up to Remus, who was now with Peter, Alice, and Frank.

"What was that all about, mate?" Remus muttered into Sirius' ear, avoiding the others' gazes.

"I'll tell you later."

No sooner had he said that than the Gryffindor Quidditch team walked out on the pitch. Cheers erupted and wand tips ignited, lighting up the stadium for what was most students' first Friday match.

It was a good game, with James catching the Snitch after an hour of Gryffindor scoring. They now had a good lead for the Quidditch Cup. But no matter how hard he tried, Sirius could not pay attention to the match. His mind kept going back to the voices beneath him. His mind kept going back to the voice of his brother.

The morning was one of the most hectic of the year at Hogwarts. All of the students were packing what they would need for the holidays and then heading down for breakfast. The Hogwarts Express would leave in two hours from the Hogsmeade station.

There was a handful of students who were not going home for the holidays. It included about twenty total, the most being Gryffindors, who were planning on staying behind with the professors to 'keep them company' Frank Longbottom had said. Remus thought that that was kind of them, but he was set on visiting his family for the holidays.

"I think that's it," Sirius groaned, slamming his trunk shut and shoving it back up to his bed. All the boys' trunks would stay at the school; each was bringing a knapsack full of things home. Sirius would be going home to the Potters' with James; he didn't feel up to staying at Hogwarts and his mother made her feelings on his return obvious. Peter was going to France with his parents, who wanted to visit some friends.

"Hurry up!" Peter complained, for the tenth time. "I want to go down and get breakfast!"

"For the last time, Wormtail, you can go down and get your own breakfast at any time. We are not stopping you. But all of us need to finish packing first. You can wait or go. Your choice," said James, who had almost lost his patience with his best friend.

Peter looked angry and ashamed at the same time, a tough accomplishment in Remus' opinion. But he did not speak again, or complain until the other three boys were throwing their bags onto their backs and walking out the door.

"I can't believe that it's almost Christmas!" the scrawny boy exclaimed. Indeed, the Hogwarts hallways were lined with decorations. Wreaths hung on doorways, and the Fat Lady already had boxes filled with eggnog bottles lining her frame. Even the suits of armor were shinier than usual, and each was singing a different carol as students passed. It was not great, though, due to the fact that none of the suits knew the actual words to the carols. They just sort of mumbled to the tune, pretending.

The Great Hall had snowflakes drifting down from the ceiling, showing the frosty weather outside. No matter the weather, though, the Hall was warm and cozy, with logs burning in fireplaces along the wall. Christmas trees numbered twelve in all, one at each fire. A thirteenth sat behind the professors' table, the largest and prettiest of all. Little fairy lights hung on the branches, each one holding a peppermint candy cane. A soft golden light encased the scene, making Remus feel a little sad to be leaving for the holidays.

Lily Evans was laughing with Frank and Alice. They were both staying, but Lily would be going home to her family in Cokeworth. She had told Remus that Severus Snape would be coming to her house for Christmas dinner, even though her sister, Petunia, hated him. Lily was the only witch in her family, and she had mentioned that Petunia was jealous. Her parents were extremely proud, though, and she wanted to show them she could do well at Hogwarts. Snape was coming because she suspected he wouldn't be having a Christmas dinner if he didn't. Besides, the Evans liked Severus.

"Moony, are you going to eat anything?" James asked, pointing to Remus' plate. It was filled with food that Remus did not put there, but that his friends would insist on him eating. They were worried about him, as the full moon would be during the holidays and they wouldn't be able to be there. He was okay with that, though. That they would try to help any other time meant a lot to him already.

"I am, James. Thanks for loading my plate with so much food that I won't be able to fill into a compartment."

"No problem, mate," James laughed.

The boys ate until they were full, and then wandered outside in hats and gloves. The wind was blowing snow everywhere, and they took cover near the front doors. Finally, McGonagall walked out and announced that the Hogwarts Express would be leaving soon. She had gathered all of the students leaving for home and they began the long walk to Hogsmeade.

Funny, Remus thought, about thirty minutes into their hike. Hogsmeade never seems this far when we are walking there for visits. He was referring to the Hogsmeade trips that students took throughout the year. All third year students and above could leave for the day to go into the nearby all-wizard village, the only one that Remus knew of. There was an owl post shop, the Three Broomsticks, which served the best butterbeer anyone had ever tasted, and a candy shop with every kind of magical candy you could imagine. It was the highlight of being a third year, one thing that everyone wanted to be able to do. Remus hadn't gone on the last trip (he had been studying for midterms) but he would be going on the February one. Unfortunately, it was on Valentine's Day, which meant most of the students would be going as dates, and it would be hard to avoid snogging couples everywhere he went.

The walk was quiet, with everyone trying to keep at least somewhat warm from the frosty air. After a few more minutes of teeth chattering, Remus saw the town open up in front of him. Instead of going inside, though, Professor McGonagall led them to the station seated right outside. The Hogwarts Express was already waiting, its maroon coloring shining in the pale light. Students started climbing aboard, eager to get out of the cold.

"Have a good Christmas!" McGonagall cried. "We will see you back next year!"

Remus smiled in spite of himself, amused by his professor's pun. Then he followed Sirius aboard, turning and waving one last time to his school. He waved and smiled until someone elbowed him from behind. "Hurry up! Some of us actually get cold around here." Remus turned and walked in, getting a glimpse of the short second year Slytherin who had talked to him. He kept walking and found the compartment with his friends.

"Oi! What took you so long, Moony?" James asked.

"You know, just looking around one last time. It's so nice during the holidays; sometimes I find myself wanting to stay."

The Marauders had stayed at Hogwarts for Christmas once before, during their second year. It had been extraordinarily fun, and they had had the entire Gryffindor common room to themselves every evening. The feast was eaten with all of the professors, who drank so much eggnog that they didn't notice when Sirius and James took some. Only the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, seemed to notice, and he just glanced at Remus with a twinkle in his eye.

"Yeah, I'll miss it. But my mum has her own feast planned out. And I wouldn't miss that for anything."

"Well, your mum just happens to be a very good cook," Sirius said, who had stayed at the Potters' more often than he stayed in his own home.

Peter looked uncomfortable. "Mum doesn't cook for us. Either Dad does or we find a Muggle place to eat."

"How does that work, exactly?" Sirius inquired.

"What, Muggle shops?" Peter laughed.

"Yeah. What are they like? And how do they eat? What do they eat?" Both Sirius and James, who had never spent much time around Muggles, leaned forward to better hear Peter.

Peter, who was never in the spotlight, seemed to be enjoying it. "Well, they have these little restaurants where food is served. They have to cook it themselves, by hand usually."

"By hand?" Sirius exclaimed.

Remus chuckled. "Of course. No magic."

"No magic," repeated James and Sirius, mystified.

Peter continued. "And they eat turkey and other stuff. It is all in a huge feast and most of the Muggles eat at their homes. Some go to the restaurants, though, if they don't want to make it. Many eat like animals, just shoving their face right-"

"Oh, I wish you wouldn't exaggerate, Peter." Remus interrupted. "Muggles eat the same way we do, as humans. They aren't a different species, you know."

James nodded as though he understood. Remus imagined that he had just made a mental note to ask his mum and dad about Muggles when he saw them.

"I wonder how French Muggles eat," Peter said, a little sadly.

"I thought you were visiting some wizard friends!" Remus was sure he had heard that part correctly.

"Oh, I am. But we are only having a Christmas feast with them. Other than that, we are traveling France, eating whatever they eat. What if I don't like anything?"

"Then you'll slim down," James laughed. Peter turned red and began stuttering. He wasn't fat, but his weight had always been a sensitive subject.

"Leave him be, James." Remus was tired of having to stand up for his friend, especially against his other friends.

Talking ceased, and only after a warm soup for lunch did it resume. Even then, the boys were trying to stay on good grounds with each other. Finally, the train started to slow.

"We must be almost there," Remus said.

"Sure, and then we will see each other in the new year," Peter unhappily.

The Marauders got their things together and then waited to arrive at the magical platform nine and three-quarters. It was in between platforms nine and ten in King's Cross Station, London. Remus saw his parents waiting through the window. He emerged from the train with his friends and then turned to them.

"Are you sure you'll be alright without us, Moony?" James asked.

"I've done my transformations for thirteen years without you. One more won't hurt."

James nodded, and then turned to Peter. "Well, see you. Bye, Moony!" Everyone said their goodbyes and then walked to their parents, Sirius walking behind James to the Potters. After Remus had hugged both his parents, he distinctly heard James ask his mother, "Mum, how do Muggles eat?"

James' parents were full wizards, pure-bloods, some would call them. Full wizards went all the way back to the Peverell family, James' dad would say. His family didn't boast, though, nor did they discriminate against those who were not full wizards. Someone like Lily Evans was called a Muggle-born. She was the only witch in her family. A lot of pure-bloods disliked the Muggle-borns and called them Mudbloods, as in, their blood was not pure. It was one of the most insulting names that anyone could give to another wizard. Half-bloods were children of one magical parent and one Muggle parent. Some pure-bloods scoffed at this, thinking it was wrong to breed with Muggles.

The Blacks, Sirius' family, were one of them. Mrs. Black would always look down on anyone who did not have a pure wizarding line dating back until records weren't available anymore. She had decided to boast whenever she was in public. She would do anything at all to keep her bloodlines pure, even if it meant doing something horrible. Sirius' aunt Andromeda had gone and married a Muggle man, Ted Tonks. Now they had a child together, a Metamorphmagus daughter they had named Nymphadora. Mrs. Black had burned Andromeda off of the family genealogy tree. Sirius had been threatened with being burned off the tree, but James knew that he didn't really care whether he was on the tree or not. He knew who he was and who he wanted to be, and it really didn't matter if he was on a plant in his mother's house.

After James and Sirius had followed his parents out of platform nine and three-quarters (you had to run into the barrier, which would then distribute you onto the Muggle side of King's Cross), they walked outside into a back area with shade.

One of the reasons James loved his parents was that they were cool. James never had to worry about his parents embarrassing him; he was more likely to humiliate himself. They also didn't follow the wizarding laws as strictly as other parents. Such as the Apparating law. Wizards and witches under the age of sixteen could not Apparate. But James' parents had decided that any other way of getting home was too slow and mundane. Each year, they would take James (and Sirius, if he came) for side-along Apparating. Even though the boys weren't doing the magic themselves, it was counted illegal. James' dad always consoled his mother that if anyone ever found out, they wouldn't mind one way or the other, that there were more pressing matters in the Ministry of Magic than some delinquent parents.

Today was no different. James walked over to his dad and grabbed his arm.

"Sirius, make sure to hold on this time. We don't want a repeat of last year," Mrs. Potter laughed.

Sirius chuckled along and nodded. "No, Mrs. Potter. I'm not ending up splinched again."

Splinching was a term used when wizards would Apparate and leave some form of them behind. It had happened to Sirius last summer when he had come for a week. He felt awkward about holding onto James' mum's arm and didn't hold on tightly. When they had all arrived on the Potters' front lawn out in the country, Sirius was lying on the ground and moaning. Half of his right foot was missing. That had been an interesting day, James thought with a smile.

As soon as Sirius grabbed onto Mrs. Potter, James' dad turned on the spot, dragging his son with him. James felt the familiar tug on his body, and then the sensation that his body was being pulled through a too-small tube, all while trying to turn in place still. It was one of the most uncomfortable feelings that James had ever experienced, though his parents said that it got better with time. Finally, his feet hit the ground and he stumbled forward onto the grass of his yard, landing right next to Sirius. His parents laughed and helped them up, leading the way in.

James breathed in the smell of his house, the scent that he only got to indulge himself in a few times a year. The kitchen was the same as usual, with just a few more pots and pans washing themselves in the sink than was normal. A small tabby cat was dozing in a sunny spot on the couch, waiting for the affection James would give it. As soon as he and Sirius walked up, however, the cat jumped up startled, hissed at Sirius, and ran off.

"Guess cats don't like you, mate," James snorted. "Not now that you are- never mind." James' parents looked at the boys curiously, but didn't question them. That was another thing James liked. His parents made sure that he knew they were always there for him, but they didn't press him for any information he didn't want to give, unless it was dangerous. That suited James just fine, a benefit to having parents who remembered what it was like to be a teenager.

"Before you run off, boys, make sure to be back for dinner. If you are late, you starve." James' mother was a kind woman, but she was serious about respect. If anyone was late to anything, they simply didn't have it. The Potter family had learned to be in the house and sitting down for supper five minutes before she called.

Mr. Potter, James' dad, was the opposite. He was a Ministry worker and made enough money to support the family, with a lot left over to put into the bank. He was a tall man, with black hair that was slowly graying. His eyes sparkled in mischief and he was always ready for a good prank.

James had always thought that it was odd that his parents had fallen in love; they didn't seem to like the same things at all. His mother, a beautiful woman, who was short and had gorgeous red hair, didn't enjoy the pranks as much as James and his father. She was a wizarding historian and wrote novels about whatever she found out. She liked to try new recipes, and stay at home. She was a bookworm through and through, reading anything and everything that came her way. The only downfall was that she believed that everyone was as interested in Cornish Pixies as she was.

James and Sirius dropped their packs in James' room, and then ran outside to play one-on-one Quidditch.

Peter didn't even have a chance to be at home for five minutes before his parents announced that they were leaving. He threw his bag onto his bed and grabbed the already- packed one waiting at the front door. Then he walked outside and touched the smelly old boot right as his dad said "one".

The Portkey gave a hard jerk right behind Peter's navel, and then dropped him down in France's countryside. He fell onto his side and then hopped up right away, eager to get moving. His parents were planning on hiking through France in the two weeks that they would be here. Between hikes, they'd stop in at the Fontaines' home for Christmas. Mr. Pettigrew had met Mr. Fontaine during a trip to France for the Ministry. They had been friends ever since, and met up every few years. This would be Peter's second time meeting them.

The French countryside was covered in snow, with menacing clouds promising more. Until then, they drifted lazily across the sky, heading toward what Peter could only assume was Paris.

Mrs. Pettigrew was a short lady, a little rounder than most. Whatever extra weight she had was doubled in kindness and happiness. She was always so proud of Peter and whatever he did. Her only flaw was her pride in being a pure-blood.

Mr. Pettigrew was short as well, but skinny. He was a Ministry worker, one of the ambassadors that traveled to other countries to check on their Ministries. He enjoyed his job, but did not like having to spend so much time away from home. It was a bigger issue when Peter was young, but even now, he didn't like leaving Peter's mom all by herself.

"Ready, son?" Mr. Pettigrew asked.

Peter nodded and picked up his bag. He followed his parents, who were walking toward the nearest village, which, according to maps, was at least eleven miles away.

Remus was sitting at home with his father. His mother had left right after the family arrived home. She had decided on doing her Christmas shopping before the crowds came. He was reading a book by the fireplace, his pet terrier sitting on his lap.

Skipper was the only animal who didn't seem to have a problem being near a werewolf. Remus suspected that was the reason that his parents had got him the pup. They always felt bad about his condition, and his dad blamed himself, even if Remus didn't. Mr. Lupin had scavenged the entire United Kingdom, searching for a cure. His mother helped when she could. They did not seem to understand that, no matter what happened, Remus loved them just for trying to help him.

Mrs. Lupin reminded James of his mother, when he had met her. Remus' mother was pretty and quiet, soft-spoken and kind. She had amber eyes that made you look away if she stared at you too hard. They seemed to always know if someone was lying to her.

Mr. Lupin was a stressed man, who blamed himself for almost everything that went wrong. He was constantly apologizing, but he had a good heart. He had very strong morals and helped anyone who needed it. Remus looked up to his father and imagined himself doing the same thing in a few more years.

Skipper sat up and barked, one quick burst of sound. Remus put down his book and faced the door, ready to grab the shopping from his mother when she walked in the door.

Christmas at the Potters' was never a huge affair. James and his parents would eat the meal that Mrs. Potter cooked, which was often quite large, and Sirius was usually present. Everyone seemed satisfied this way, without having to go out and celebrate with friends. James didn't have to worry about leaving any relatives out; both his parents were only children. His last grandfather was still alive, but in St. Mungo's, a hospital specifically for wizards. Old Mr. Potter (he was James' dad's father) had been bitten by something a year ago, right after his wife's death. Ever since, his health had been slowly declining, until he wasn't able to take care of himself. Since that day, Mr. Potter resided in the hospital, to be visited by James twice a year, once at Christmas and once during the summer. James' mother would visit at least twice a month, and James' father was there every weekend. It just so happened that Sirius had not yet met James' grandfather, but since he was staying with the Potters, he'd be going to St. Mungo's a day after Christmas. For some reason, James got the idea that Sirius was exceptionally happy about that.

James woke up to the smell of rolls baking. He rolled over in bed and opened his dark burgundy curtains. Through the frosted glass, he could see the ground, three stories below. It was covered in fresh snow that had fallen in the night; no footprints had yet disturbed the masterpiece.

James rolled back over, now facing his best friend. "Sirius. Sirius!" he called, rousing the sleeping boy.

"What do you want? Can't you see that I am sleeping?" Sirius moaned.

"Get up, you prat. It's Christmas!"

At that, Sirius jerked awake so hard that he tumbled out of bed, dragging the bedcovers with him. He scowled as James laughed. "Can't you busy yourself with presents?"

It was true; James had a pile of gifts on the floor at the foot of his bed. Each was wrapped in colorful paper, reminding the two boys even more of what day it was. Sirius got to his stack, which was slightly smaller than James', first, due to the fact that he was already on the ground. He grabbed a forest green parcel that bore the Black family crest.

"Let's see what Mum has sent this year," he muttered.

When the paper was torn off, a silky fabric fell out. "NO!" Sirius cried in disbelief. James grabbed the present from where it had fallen. Upon closer examination, he realized that the fabric was actually a silky throw blanket, in Slytherin colors, green and silver. An ornate snake slithered up the middle, and centered at the bottom was _Sirius Black_. James laughed out loud.

"Does she actually think you are going to use this? For anything besides a towel, I mean," he added, knowing full well the actual use Sirius would give the blanket.

But his best friend had already moved on. He took one look at Remus' gift, a book about Animagi, and then gasped at his gift from James. It was a huge envelope filled with pictures of Muggle models. And some were even on motorcycles.

"Thanks, mate! Now I have something to hang in the dorm!"

"Better put some sort of charm on them. Peter would have a heart attack if he saw that many pretty girls in one area."

James turned to his own stack, satisfied with watching his friend open gifts. He opened the top gift, which turned out to be a book on Quidditch, from Remus. Normally, he would not be pleased with getting a book, for any reason. But since it was his best friend, and his favorite sport, James was actually excited to begin his reading. Sirius had gotten him a crate of butterbeer, which James had no idea how he had gotten it to the Potters' home without detection. Peter had sent a huge bag of candy, all of James' favorites from Hogsmeade. His own parents had placed a new broomstick on top of everything else. They also gave him a new quill for school, along with James' grandfather's chess set.

James gasped at the sight of it, for he had coveted the board since he had first played on it. Over the years, he had finally gotten the chessmen to listen to him as well as they listened to the original owner. It was incredible, and finally his. That was definitely the best gift of the day.

James' odd Uncle Rick had sent a pair of socks, knitted by hand. They were actually incredibly detailed, for a sixty year old man to have made.

Sirius paused after all of his gifts were opened. The last one had been a chess set from James' parents, not as nice as James' new one, but Sirius liked it just the same. He had already asked James to play a game with him four times since tearing off the paper. "Isn't that your mum, mate?"

James stopped moving and listened. "James! Come down here!"

"Uh oh. Are you in trouble already? It's Christmas!" Sirius complained, though grabbing his chess set and following James down the stairs.

"Morning, Mum. Did I do something wrong?" he put on his most charming smile, the one he usually reserved for Lily Evans.

"No, dear. I wanted to thank you for my gift. Oh, it's lovely, James!" For James had gotten his mother anew apron, that had a charm on it to have infinite space within the pockets.

James and Sirius both sighed in relief. "Glad you like it. Dad, did you open yours yet?"

"Course I did. And I love it. Thank you. Maybe we can play later. Your mother can use my old broom, if she wants to." James had given his dad a used, but barely, broomstick, so that they could practice together on holidays. Mr. Potter had been a Chaser when he attended Hogwarts.

"I think I will, thank you. We will have to be even. Your dad and I will play against you two. I guess we will have to take it easy, though, won't we, honey?"

"Of course. They wouldn't be able to keep up if they wanted to," Mr. Potter bragged as Sirius and James snorted with laughter. The Potters were not the youngest parents around.

The whole family walked outside and grabbed broomsticks, James and his dad both on their new ones. Mr. Potter released the balls before flying into the air. At once, they were off. James was playing both Seeker and Chaser, as Sirius doubled up as Keeper and Beater. The young boys soon realized that the adults were not actually bad. They could fly extremely well, and within the hour, Mrs. Potter had grabbed the Snitch. James hadn't even realized it was there. Still, James and Sirius won for the afternoon, after James had scored over thirty goals. He shook hands with his parents, for good sportsmanship, before turning to his best friend.

"You know, I think I like playing Chaser better than Seeker. Maybe next year I'll just try out for that and let someone better try to hunt down the Snitch." He then left his friend to ponder this while he put everything up and headed inside.

The rest of the day was spent playing wizard's chess, switching between Sirius' and James' boards. Mrs. Potter came and played when she wasn't cooking. James soon banned his father from playing, simply because he kept winning.

The Potters' feast was as big as it always was, with a small turkey sitting in the middle of the table. Varying puddings surrounded it, along with gravy and other dishes. Dessert was served after everyone had stuffed themselves to the point of no return. James forced two slices of pie down, and then felt as though he was going to pop. When Sirius put down his fork, the last one to do so, the four people leaned back in their chairs and closed their eyes. They stayed like that for a few minutes, until Mrs. Potter got up and began cleaning everything up.

When the house was clean once more, everyone went into the living room. James sat by the fireplace and listened to the loving chatter of his parents. He eventually crawled upstairs and barely made it to his bed before collapsing into a deep sleep that only the night after Christmas could bring.

The next morning dawned and James was startled awake by his father.

"Come on, James. We have to make it to St. Mungo's today."

James sat up and saw Sirius blink his eyes open. "Okay, Dad. Got it. We're up."

"Be downstairs in ten minutes, please. Your mother has cereal for breakfast before we all leave'" Mr. Potter said, way too cheerily for someone up this early.

St. Mungo's was festively decorated, with wreaths hanging on each door in the hall. The Potters and Sirius didn't even stop at the help desk before walking up to the third floor. They had been so many times, they knew the way. Next time James visited, though, he would have to ask his parents which floor was for long term patients. The hospital was remodeling in the spring.

The presiding nurse smiled at James when he entered into his grandfather's room. It was decorated with everything James and his family sent to the elderly Mr. Potter. James saw a card that he had made last Halloween hanging next to the bed, along with a Get Well card from his parents. The man himself was lying in a bed in the corner. He still, thankfully, recognized his family and waved when they entered.

"Well hello there, James, my boy! And how are you?"

"Been doing well, Grandpa," James answered. "Hogwarts is the same as ever, probably since the time when you were there."

"Oh I doubt that. But enough about me. Is this strapping young fellow who I think he is?"

James had told his grandfather a lot about his friends, especially Sirius. The man found it very amusing when James explained his obsession with motorcycles and trouble. He knew more about the Marauders than anyone else, except the boys themselves.

"This would be him," James pushed Sirius ahead of him.

His friend stuck out his hand. "Sirius Black, sir. Pleased to meet you." _At least he has manners around someone,_ James thought.

"Finally! I've been asking James to bring you and Remus Lupin around for ages! It's great to meet you, young man!" James' grandfather bellowed. His parents exchanged knowing smiles and left to get drinks.

When they came back, Mr. Potter's father was still talking to Sirius and James. They did so until visiting hours were over, and for another hour until the nurse came and told them that they would have to leave now.

As they arrived back home, James thought to himself how great of a Christmas it had turned out to be.

Christmas at the Evans' home was similar to the Potters' in one way: it was a quiet affair. Lily and Petunia would wake up extra early and jump on their parents' bed until they, too, were awake. Then everyone would walk into the kitchen and the girls would have to wait on their parents to get a cup of tea before heading into the living room. A Christmas tree, a live one, would sit next to the fireplace. Delicate ornaments adorned the pine, and presents surrounded the stump. It was the magic of Christmas to see everything looking so jolly.

This Christmas, about the time that Mrs. Potter was getting up, Lily Evans jumped out of bed, unable to sleep any longer. Her sister, Petunia, was smiling in her doorway. Christmas was one of the only days she was nice to Lily anymore. The little redhead chased Petunia down the hallway, their steps thundering on the second floor. The parents were still asleep, their subconscious peacefully hoping to sleep in a little longer. No such luck.

Lily ran and flopped right on her dad, while Petunia fell on top of Mrs. Evans. Both parents jolted out of their slumber and cried out before laughing when the realization hit.

"Good morning to you too, girls," Mr. Evans was a good sport and laughed joyfully. His wife was not as pleased with this holiday tradition, but she forced a laugh through her now-sore back.

Mr. Evans was of average height, with strawberry blond hair. He worked as a doctor in a Muggle hospital. Sometime, he enjoyed going for a run or working out in some other way. He was quite fit for his age.

Mrs. Evans had long red hair, darker than most natural redheads. Her emerald eyes often showed how much she loved her family. She was shy in new places, but very loud when she knew people.

Together, Lily's parents were perfect. They raised Lily and Petunia to be fair and kind, intelligent and generous. They were like puzzle pieces themselves; they fit together like they were made to be at one another's side. Lily loved her parents' relationship, and hoped to have one of her own someday.

Lily's sister, Petunia, was a small and thin Muggle. She had blond hair that hung over her shoulders. Her neck was abnormally long, something Severus Snape would always point out if she dared make fun of him.

Snow was building up outside, and a few flakes were sticking to the window. Lily sighed impatiently as her father made the tea and her mother got the mugs out. Finally, it was time to see what was under the tree.

Lily was pushed aside playfully by her sister and she then got to the living room after her. Still, a gasp escaped her lips before she could catch it.

The tree was more beautiful than it had ever been. Twinkling bulbs threw a soft glow onto the ornaments, most of which were handmade by Lily and her sister. An angel sat at the very tip and the smell of pine permeated the entire room. A fire was crackling quietly in the hearth, warming the area around it. Gifts circled the tree, a different name on each tag. Lily watched Petunia find her first present and unwrap it.

A book on home cooking tumbled out, one that Lily had seen her sister eyeing when they were in town. Petunia squealed in delight and jumped up to hug her parents.

"Oh thank you, Mum! Thanks, Dad! I love it! I'm making dinner tomorrow!"

Lily smiled and grabbed a golden bag. In it, she found a new outfit, in Gryffindor colors. It was for Quidditch, she guessed, which she had completely explained to her parents. She really liked the sport, no matter what she told anyone.

The outfit had a nice maroon shirt with a Gryffindor lion on the front. The back had Evans and the number 01 in the center. A pair of jeans accompanied the shirt, and a golden hair clip. Finally, a pair of red shoes tumbled out. Lily could only stare at her new favorite outfit. She finally got up to hug her parents, and then said about the same thing that her sister just had. The only difference was she left off the cooking part and promised to wear the outfit to the next game.

"I'm glad you like it, sweetheart," Mrs. Evans said fondly. "We had to find a man who wouldn't question what Gryffindor was to make the shirt." Both parents chuckled at the memory.

Lily grabbed a gift for her dad and Petunia brought one over to their mother. Mr. Evans was delighted when he saw the newest medical book. Mrs. Evans found new nursing scrubs, which she had expressed a need for after a patient got sick on her other outfit.

After all her presents were opened, Lily had received a few textbooks for her classes, and some that were just for reading about the wizarding world she was a part of. A new feather quill sat in its box, on top of the Muggle candy her dad had given her. She had a lovely hand drawn card from Alice and Frank. Remus had sent a letter containing a few new spells for her to practice. And a scribbled note indicated that Severus Snape would be arriving with a surprise at noon. Petunia scowled as the note was read aloud to the whole family. She hadn't liked Severus from the moment she had met him. Her feelings hadn't changed.

"Tuney, promise you'll behave," Lily pleaded with her older sister.

"I don't like him. You can't change that." Petunia Evans was one of the most stubborn people Lily knew.

Before the little girl could answer though, their mother intervened. "Petunia, you will be kind to Severus. He is our guest here. If you cannot manage that, I will have you eat dinner after us."

The girl gasped. "But, Mum! It's Christmas!"

"Don't think I won't do it. He doesn't have a family that celebrates Christmas. We are going to be his family for the night."

Petunia sighed but didn't dare argue. Instead, she challenged Lily to a snowball fight and they raced upstairs to get enough clothes on. When Lily made it back to the living room, she found her parents sitting in full snow gear, lacing up their boots.

"Dad, what are you doing?" she asked skeptically.

"Did you honestly think that we were going to let you have a snowball fight without us on Christmas? Your mother and I will be against you two, and we are going to play until that boy arrives."

At that moment, Petunia scrambled down the stairs, stopping so suddenly at the sight of her parents that she almost toppled head over heels.

"Mum?" she began. Her question would never be heard, for at that time, the Evans' parents jumped up and charged their daughters, who squealed with laughter as they were picked up. With a girl per parent, the family sauntered outside, into the undisturbed snow.

The snowball fight commenced, ending only when Severus Snape walked up the driveway, looking alarmed. Mr. Evans laughed and called everyone inside to warm up. When Lily looked back from her front door, she saw her best friend still standing awkwardly in the snow.

"Sev, come on! You're going to freeze!"

He walked towards her and thrust a small parcel into her hands, then blushed and looked down.

"What's this? You didn't have to get me anything," Lily protested.

"I told you I was arriving with a surprise. Besides, I got your gift this morning. Thanks. Maybe we can study using the same textbooks now," he mumbled. Lily had sent an owl to the Snape house that morning. Whenever she and Severus studied together in the library, she was always using a different book than he, which made it difficult to actually get quality studying in. So she sent over a set of textbooks, the same as she had. A note on top had claimed that they could now study every evening until they had to go back to their house common rooms.

Lily's gift was neatly wrapped in emerald paper, the same color as both her eyes and the Slytherin shade. She carefully unwrapped it and saw a small box. She gasped when she saw the necklace inside.

The silver chain had a small pendant at the very end. It was a lovely sculpted leaf, with gold, amber, and orange accents. Lily breathed in slowly and threw her arms around her friend.

"It's beautiful, Sev! Thank you so much!"

"There's more, you know," he said, pulling back. "Turn the leaf over."

Lily did as she was told and read the inscription on the back. It said Lily Evans and Severus Snape. Best Friends.

When Lily didn't say anything, Severus quickly said, "I know it's cheesy, but it's all that I could-"

He was cut off by a bone-crushing hug from the redhead. "I love it. So much. Thank you, Severus."

The greasy-haired boy did not reply, only held onto his friend as though his life depended on it. When she released him, he gave one last squeeze and then took the necklace from Lily's hand. She looked confused until he undid the clasp and motioned for her to turn around. He gently wrapped the chain around her neck and fastened it, then admired his handiwork.

Lily Evans sighed in content and smiled up at Severus. No words were needed for the moment; their eyes spoke for them.

Dinner was spent by Mr. and Mrs. Evans asking Severus many questions, to which Petunia would quietly harrumph. They had only made one turkey, with a few side dishes. A plate of biscuits waited on the counter for dessert.

Finally, the family and the boy were full. They moved into the living room and talked until night had fallen. Then they chatted a little while longer. Only when Mrs. Evans thought it would be soon too dangerous for Severus to return home did she insist on his safe departure. He and Lily bundled up, and then walked out into the bitter cold.

The walk was quiet; the girl was thinking of her day and her friend, and the boy was pondering what it felt like to be a part of a real, and loving, family. Too soon, they were at his house. Lily pulled her best friend back before he went through his gate. His house was dark and shabby, no lights on. It didn't appear that his family was even up waiting for him to get home.

"Thank you again for coming today, Sev," Lily said softly. The snow was drifting lazily down, falling on her nose and cheeks.

Severus smiled at her. "Anytime. You know that, Lily."

Instead of replying, Lily grabbed her friend and pulled him into a hug. She pulled back before he was ready, though. "Goodbye! See you on New Year's!" The Evans had invited the lonely boy back for the next big holiday.

"See you then," he said quietly, almost so that she couldn't hear him. After that, Severus Snape turned and walked into his gloomy little house.

Remus was having his own sort of Christmas. For starters, he had opened his gifts in the morning: one from each of the other Marauders and then a few from his parents. After all the paper was torn off and all the presents visible, he had a few new pairs of trousers (sometimes his time of the month got a bit weird), books from each of his friends (Sirius' included a few pictures of Muggle women in them), and enough wood from his father to build a house (his father was a carpenter and therefore encouraged Remus' crafting skills).

Remus himself had, funnily enough, bought his dad some wand wood. Mr. Lupin had been very interested to hear about the "wizard carpenters" as he had called them. Remus had explained all about Mr. Ollivander, the most renowned wand maker in England. "He is simply the best," Remus had said. His father had met Ollivander the previous summer, after going to Diagon Alley to pick up Remus' school supplies. Ever since August, he had not stopped talking about wands. He wanted to try his hand at making one, and wrote his son every chance he got asking if he knew anything more. Finally, Remus had grown tired of his father's questions, and decided on letting him try it for himself. His Christmas gift included six different woods, and two of each of the main center pieces: dragon heartstring, unicorn hair, and phoenix feather.

Mr. Lupin jumped in delight at his gift, and then headed to his room straightaway to put the supplies in a safe box. Remus and his mother laughed until their stomachs were sore, finally turning back to the last gift when Mr. Lupin entered the room once more.

It was a small box, wrapped in blue paper and silver ribbon. Mrs. Lupin opened it gingerly and then stared at the contents.

"Is this…. It can't be. Remus, what on earth is this?" she asked, the knowledge not with her for once in her life.

"It is, Mum. That is a seed to the Aconite plant. Otherwise known as Wolfsbane."

Even Mr. Lupin looked up at that. "Son, how did you find it?"

"Never mind that, how did you get it here?" Remus' mother shrieked.

"Mum, I knew how much you wanted an Aconite plant to experiment on. So I went around and asked if anyone had one. I ended up finding a shady guy in the Hog's Head, in Hogsmeade, who said he knew where I could get a seed. Then, when I was given the seed, I had them place it in that box. I wrapped it up to make sure that it wouldn't touch me. Besides, I think it will poison anyone who eats it; werewolves just have to be a bit more careful and not touch it either."

"Oh, honey. Thank you. Maybe now we can find a cure."

Remus was not extremely hopeful, but he knew if anyone could find a cure for lycanthropy, it would be his mother. She was a scientist in the Muggle, and she loved to study plants in particular. She had very recently worked with the Ministry of Magic to try to figure out a cure for Alihotsy. Remus thought it was interesting that his mother, a witch who had practically left the wizarding world for her husband, had found out that Glumbumble would cure the hysteria faster than any of the trained Herbologists could.

The Lupins' Christmas dinner was huge, with family coming from all over the country. Nobody except his parents knew what Remus was, and he was content to keep it that way. After the dinner, everyone sat around and played board games. By two in the morning, the last of the guests had left and Remus fell into his bed.

It was now New Year's Eve, leaving one more week before the holidays were over and school would resume. In just six days, Remus would have to drive back to King's Cross Station with his parents, and then wave goodbye as his parents smiled proudly but sadly.

Even sooner than that was another full moon. Remus had gotten used to having his friends around for the transformation. Now he would just have himself and Skipper. The dog seemed to be okay with running around with a werewolf. It wasn't the worst thing that could happen, Remus had to keep reminding himself. The transformations could be more painful, or he could be completely alone. As it was, his parents would tie him up in the backyard (under his own orders of course) and lock all the entrances to the house. Albus Dumbledore himself had sent the instructions on what to do when Remus was at home for the full moon. So far, his directions had not failed the family.

As the sun began to set, Mr. and Mrs. Lupin took Remus outside. Mrs. Lupin had tears in her eyes as she got the harness that would strap around her son's chest.

"I promise, one day I will find a cure, my son." One tear slipped out of her eye and traced a silver path down her cheek.

"I know you will, Mum. But that day is not today. We have to do this at least one more time. Please. Just make sure you and Dad are safe inside."

"I'll make sure we are all inside, son. Be safe, yourself," Mr. Lupin said sadly.

Finally, the harness was hooked up, and Remus walked over to sit next to a large oak tree in the backyard.

He watched his parents share one last look and then turn to the house. Before the door closed, Mrs. Lupin turned around a whispered, "I'll see you in the morning, Remus."

Remus then listened to all of the locks slide into place as night fell. Finally, the moon began to rise, and immediately when Remus forced himself to look toward the half-risen orb, the transformation began.

A familiar pain shot through his entire body, like pure electricity. Then, he felt his skin stretching, stretching, until it could stretch no more. The flesh tore as Remus screamed at the top of his lungs; long dark hair sprouted where skin had just been. His fingernails pushed farther out of his skin, yellowing and sharpening to a point. Remus felt his face narrowing into a canine's muzzle, the ears growing and moving to the top of his head. The teeth inside his mouth now became sharper, enough to cut his lip if he tried to bite down. The screams that were tearing Remus' throat to shreds became ferocious sounds. They were inhuman, with a wild sound to them. They became the call of a werewolf.

It was amazing how something as simple as a bite could have such a profound effect on the human body. Remus marveled at the impossible idea that saliva could change an entire being's life. It was fascinating, yet incredibly disturbing to him. This happened every full moon, when he was not fully werewolf yet. He appeared as one, but it would be another hour until his mind was taken over by the monster. Until then, he would wait, patiently lying next to Skipper.

As the moon rose higher, Remus could feel the ties holding his mind in place slipping. It was time. His mind began to get fuzzy and he stopped being able to recall memories. The last thing to go was his sense of right and wrong. After that, he was a cold blooded killer. Strapped to a tree.

Remus Lupin, who was not really Remus Lupin anymore, jumped up and tugged at his chain. His parents had figured out long ago that nothing less than a silver chain would do. The silver was strong enough to not break, and harmful enough to prevent chewing.

The only scent filling Remus' canine nose was flesh. He smelled blood, and skin, and human in general. His body longed to tear into some fresh meat. Every instinct was telling him it was time to hunt. The only thing holding him back was the harness. Last full moon at home, the werewolf had considered destroying the oak tree, then running free. He had even tried, but the plant seemed to have some sort of charm on it, preventing any harm. Nothing Remus did made any difference.

This moon was the same, leaving the boy stranded alone, howling at the moon and being tormented by delicious scents. Nothing new happened. Instead of the peculiar stag, dog, and rat that seemed to be present at each transformation, there was a small terrier. It sat on the steps of a large building nearby, staring at the werewolf. When Remus seemed to have calmed down enough and sat, leaning against the tree, the little dog got up and strutted closer. It looked Remus in the eye, as if daring him to attack. Remus fell onto his stomach instantly. Something about the terrier told him not to mess with it. Skipper yapped playfully and licked Remus' nose, which was now at eye level for him. Together, they curled up, next to the tree, Remus careful to avoid lying on the silver chain.

After a few hours, Remus grew restless. The scents were tantalizing, and he couldn't stand it any longer. Right as he was about to move, though, the small terrier jumped to its feet and growled. Again, Remus got the notion that the dog was not to be messed with. Remus put his head back down, and only when he was satisfied that the werewolf had fallen asleep did Skipper curl up again.

Before the werewolf knew, the moon was falling beneath the horizon. It was time to transform back.

Peter was fascinated by France. It was everything he had thought it would be. One day he was in Paris, another Lyon, and yet another in Normandy. He wouldn't admit it around James or Sirius, but maybe Remus would understand. Peter honestly loved learning about the Muggle history. He thought their recent war was very interesting, especially when his parents explained it. His mother told him that the war was actually not completely Muggle after all. The majority of the fighting Europeans were wizards. A little under half of the other nations were, too. Peter could not fathom how no one figured out how much magic had been involved, but his parents said that a lot of memory charms were used. So much, in fact, that some of the soldiers never were quite the same afterwards.

Paris was a type of home in itself. It had little restaurants and beautiful alleys. The Pettigrews met more than one wizard during their time in the capital. They stayed with their friends the Fontaines for Christmas Eve, and then throughout the holiday for dinner. A feast was prepared, with many French wizards Apparating in for some of the food. After Peter ate until he was stuffed, he slept in the upstairs bedroom for the last night.

The family backpacked for another few days before reaching their last spot in the middle of nowhere. The wizards would camp there for the rest of their vacation, leaving the day before they had to get Peter to King's Cross. The countryside was picturesque, snow covering the landscape.

Mr. Pettigrew had brought his tent, which was magically enhanced to be bigger on the inside. Peter would even have his own room. The tent had a crackling fire, keeping the area warm even though the snow was thick outside. Peter loved sitting by the fire and reading the new book on Muggles that Remus had sent for Christmas. It had information on everything about them, including how they lived and even how they ate. Peter was already halfway through, and he had only started it yesterday. While he read, he wore the fuzzy, magically-charmed thinking socks James had sent. He also ate the candy and bookmarked his page with motorcycle photographs from Sirius. His parents had promised him a gift when they got back to England, but he didn't really mind. France was enough of a gift itself.

Too soon, the vacation was over and the Pettigrews Apparated onto their front lawn. Peter carried his bag inside and began to prepare for the following day.

Remus was having a good packing day. Skipper sat with him the whole time, more so than usual. Remus wondered if anything special had happened while he was a werewolf.

Remus slowly packed his bag, taking care to pack everything he would need for the rest of the year. This included his new quills and parchment, textbooks and more robes. When the bag was full, it weighed more than Skipper, and Remus dreaded having to put it on. He put it in the corner of his bedroom and organized until his parents called him down for dinner.

During dinner, Mr. Lupin smiled. "Remus, would you like to go to the cinema tonight? We can catch that movie you wanted to watch. What was it? The Gone Gansy?"

"Great Gatsby, Dad. It came out this year. I heard that it's supposed to be the best movie of 1974! Even wizards have heard something about it."

"Yeah, yeah," his father grumbled.

"Can we go, then?" Now Remus was excited. He had been waiting for this opportunity all year.

Mrs. Lupin stood up. "Well, if you want to catch it, we'd better get going." Remus jumped out of his seat and grabbed his coat. His mother cleared the dishes with one flick of her wand. Everyone then piled into the car and drove to the cinema.

The Great Gatsby was everything that Remus had hoped for. It had just enough romance, but not too much. He loved the storyline in general. It had become a new favorite of his, right away.

The only thing left for the Lupin family was to spend one last night together and then wait until the morning rays struck the earth. Then they would say goodbye to their only child until the summer.

James was not looking forward to leaving home. It had been the best Christmas by far, especially with his best friend around. The only thing that could make it better was if Remus and Peter had been there. _Or Lily Evans_, James thought to himself.

It was the last day before they would have to leave. Sirius was lounging in the living room, doing absolutely nothing. James had been tempted to join him, but his mother threatened to send him to Professor Slughorn's for the summer. His teacher had offered him rent for the summer months if he would in turn study Potions with him. James had politely declined, but Mrs. Potter still held it over his head.

After an hour of steady cleaning, James had packed both his and Sirius' bags and left them by the front door downstairs. Then he sat down across from his friend and took a nap.

King's Cross Station was packed with Muggles and wizards alike. A guard was standing next to the barrier for Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, regulating the amount of wizards entering at one time. Nobody wanted the Muggles to get suspicious and start running at walls themselves.

Peter ran full speed and then boarded the Hogwarts Express to reserve a compartment for his friends. Then he got off to wait with his parents.

James and Sirius ran together at the barrier, disappearing through it and spotting Peter on the other side.

"We've got so much to tell you!"

"So have I!" All of the boys seemed eager to share their holiday stories, but they agreed to wait until the train was moving. Sirius took their bags into the compartment and then walked out just in time to see Lily Evans appear on the platform. She studiously ignored James and found her friends farther away.

Remus said his goodbyes to his parents before he entered Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. They had never tried to get Mr. Lupin through the magical barrier, and were not eager to attempt it now. His mother had tears in her eyes again, but blinked them away before they fell.

"I'll miss you. We both will. Enjoy your year, and write often!"

His dad added, "We'll see you in the summer. We love you."

Remus' eyes were a little wetter than usual, but a few blinks and that was under control.

"I'll miss you both. Love you!" Instead of sticking around and possibly missing the train (which no one had done so far, so Remus wasn't sure how the student would get to Hogwarts), he hugged his parents one last time and ran toward the barrier. On the other side, he found his friends already grouped together and waiting.

"So, Wormtail, how do French people eat?" James asked curiously, once the Hogwarts Express had started moving.

"Turns out they eat exactly like us. Remus was right. Thanks, by the way, for your gifts. I enjoyed them a lot."

Each boy then compared what he had received for Christmas.

"My dad wants to try his hand at making wands now," Remus laughed.

"Who knows? Maybe we will all be going to Mr. Lupin's shop in the future with our kids," James replied.

"Mate, my dad isn't magical; I don't think he could get the right touch in the wands. Anyways, I have to try them out this summer. If my house catches on fire, I'll send an owl your way."

All four boys laughed and then Sirius changed the subject. "So how do you think the Hogsmeade visit is going to go in February?"

Each of the past visits to the wizarding village had something go wrong. During the first of this year, a student had had way too much butterbeer, and wandered around lost until he was found to be missing. The next time involved a duel between two witty Ravenclaws. Each had ended up in St. Mungo's with some very interesting battle scars. The next visit promised something new, as it was on Valentine's Day.

"Some poor bloke is going to get dumped and the girl will return with another bloke. Happens every year, mate. It's textbook," James said.

Instead of replying, Remus heard the brakes squeal quietly, a sign that the train was approaching the castle. The boys grabbed their robes and threw them on, not bothering with ties. The only thing left for the night was the welcome back feast, and then everyone would be going to their common rooms anyways.

"You reckon Dumbledore will give another long speech today?" James often got bored with the headmaster's incredibly odd dialogue.

"Maybe. It is a welcoming feast. But then again, it's not the start of term. We might luck out and just get to eat and leave," Remus reasoned.

The rest of the ride was peaceful. The Marauders were lost in their own thoughts. Eventually, the castle came into view. Finally, they were home.

Remus had been right about the feast; Dumbledore barely spoke at all, which, if it had been any other day, Remus would have probably wondered if something was wrong. As it was, he was distracted by the prospect of having to work on the Marauder's Map that evening. So far, the feet were able to move and they had names attached to them. James and Sirius were hoping to explore the grounds more next year, especially when they were each in their animal form. The Map would be changeable, and Remus would add what they discovered as the time came. Tonight, he was hoping to try a spell that would allow him to draw the layout of the castle. Then he would start figuring out a spell that would attach the feet and names to the real person, and show where they were at all times.

The common room was empty by midnight, on account of students preparing for classes tomorrow. Remus would have liked to sleep early as well, but there was no time for that. He had to help his friends while he remembered the spell.

James and Sirius were sitting in the most comfortable chairs, with Peter on the ground next to the small coffee table. Remus grabbed the Map and sat down next to Peter. James didn't even seem to notice; he was red in the face and trying his hardest not to shout at Sirius. Sirius was just attempting to keep the smile off his face.

"What are you angry about today, James?" Remus asked tiredly.

"Sirius set me up! He-"

"I did not, Prongs! It was specific to your instructions! I cannot believe you are mad about-"

"You can both shut your mouths and watch me try this spell. Afterward, if there is time, you can tell me what must be a fascinating story."

Remus' calm but warning tone shut Sirius up quickly. He knew that none of them would be able to figure out how to make the Map so quickly without their werewolf friend. James, on the other hand, was still seething and refused to look anywhere near his best friend.

"Okay, I need to try to draw this. If the spell works, I'll start on the layout of the entire castle. Hogwarts has a lot of rooms; I'll need your help to remember where they all are."

He put the tip of his wand against the parchment and muttered, "Hauriret." Where the wand had touched to parchment now lay a black dot, thickening with each second of more contact.

"Fantastic! Way to go, Moony!" Sirius cried.

Even James looked delighted at their progress. "Okay, first, you need you draw the Gryffindor tower. I want this to be the first place on the Map, especially since it is where we have been creating it."

"Good idea, mate!" Sirius was obviously trying to get back on James' good side, but quelled under the glare he received.

Remus took his wand and drew out a long square for the common room, and then wrote that inside. Then he drew the dormitories, and labeled each set. Finally, he drew the hallway leading out. The corridor was drawn next, along with the stairs leading down. Remus drew the Great Hall and the courtyards, then included the Quidditch Pitch and greenhouses.

"Don't forget Transfiguration and McGonagall's office," James warned.

Remus nodded and began drawing the overall layout of the first floor. He then drew the classrooms, including Transfiguration and all of the empty rooms.

Within the hour, the four boys had worked hard enough to develop the entire first floor of the castle. Remus then smiled and pocketed his wand, only after checking to see if it was still drawing. Then he slid the Map to the middle of the table and whispered, "Mischief managed," with the other three boys. He was just about to go upstairs when James cleared his throat.

"Er, Moony, you promised to listen. Remember?"

"James, does it have to be tonight? I'm exhausted and we have classes in about five hours."

James looked offended before answering. "I would hope that my own best friend would not be going back on a promise. Am I wrong?"

Remus shrugged and then wilted back onto the ground. "Go ahead, then. And make it quick."

"All right. Thank you, dear friend. As I was saying, Sirius set me up. I have a date tomorrow night, apparently."

"A date?" both Remus and Peter exclaimed.

"I did not 'set him up'. He specifically told me that he had not been on a date in a while and wouldn't mind going on one. So I found a girl that would enjoy a quiet, romantic dinner with the one and only James Potter."

"Wait a second. You haven't even told me who the girl is! Who is she, Sirius?"

Sirius knew he was in trouble if James was using his first name instead of his nickname. "Her name is Ramona Beesley. She is a fifth year student in Ravenclaw. Very pretty, long black hair, and eyes the color of the sea. Sound all right to you?"

"Of course it won't be all right with him! You didn't set him up with a certain girl who has green eyes and red hair, did you?" Peter chuckled.

Sirius and Remus burst into laughter at the comment, only making James angrier. When they had calmed down enough to let him speak, he shouted, "Will you shut up! Why have you got to make fun of me like that?"

"Oh, relax, James. Peter didn't mean any harm, and neither did we. Sirius was just trying to be a good friend," Remus replied, not at all affected by the yelling.

"Well I don't want to go. I am going to sit here and do absolutely nothing until you come back from your date with Ramona, Sirius."

"Oh, but I can't just take your date and save your rear end. I have my own date."

"You too?" Remus didn't think that he could be so surprised in one night.

Sirius was clearly enjoying all of the attention, though. "Of course. I wasn't going to let James have all the fun. I set us up on a double date. I'm going with Ramona's best friend, another fifth year who just happens to be as smart as she is."

"I suppose you will just have to find Ramona tomorrow and tell her that I'm not able to go. You can have her and the friend, if you like."

Sirius finally got serious. "James, mate, I don't care whether you want to or not. You are going to come. If you really want to, you may think of it as a friendly hangout. You will, in fact, be with me. And no matter what you say, the date cannot be rearranged. You see, I had to pull a lot of strings to get this to work. We will be accompanying Professor Mayshore to Hogsmeade. She is going to drop us off in that little restaurant that I can't remember the name for. After she is done sitting at the Three Broomsticks, she'll come find us and take the four of us back to Hogwarts."

"We're going to Hogsmeade? How crazy can you get, mate?"

Sirius could tell that James was cracking, if even by a little bit. "Much more than this, if need be. Mayshore will be waiting for us in the entrance hall when dinner starts. That way we can be eating our own food before it gets too late. Oh, and I told the girls that we would meet them in that one empty classroom next to the Great Hall. They will be dressed nice, and I expect the same from you."

"You know what? Fine. I'll do it, but only because you are coming with. And don't you dare let this happen again, not without asking me first. When is the dinner?"

"Tomorrow evening. Actually," Sirius glanced at a clock in the corner, "it will be this evening. Less than twenty-four hours from now. Get ready, James."

James' face had gone red again, but Sirius darted out of his chair and upstairs before James could utter a word. The messy-haired boy chased after him as a cat chases a mouse. This time, he was hunting for the kill.

Remus turned to Peter and laughed. "Well, I guess that's it for the night. We can finally turn in and not get yelled at by them."

Peter yawned widely. "Great. Maybe I'll be able to stay awake for at least one class tomorrow."

As the two friends walked slowly up the stairs, Remus, who was clutching the Marauder's Map to his chest, thought that he heard Peter whisper to himself, "I wish I had a date for once."

In the morning, James was nowhere to be seen. Sirius was worried that he was still furious with him, but then threw the idea out; his best friend had never stayed angry with him for more than an hour. Sirius himself was actually looking forward to that evening. It would be excellent to just get out of the castle and be alone with his best friend and two girls. He felt just a bit bad for not setting up Remus and Peter, as well, but he didn't really have time. He had run into Ramona when he was walking back from the bathroom and the idea just hit him. Ramona Beesley would shamelessly flirt with James whenever he was around her. Sirius had seen her friend a couple of times and she was almost as beautiful as Ramona. He still couldn't believe his luck at securing the date.

And Professor Mayshore had been more than willing to help them out. She said 'young love is just the sweetest thing in the world', or something like that. She was the one who had offered taking them to Hogsmeade; Sirius had been planning on using her classroom. Mayshore had personally gone to Headmaster Dumbledore and asked permission. He allowed it, just for the night.

Sirius had everything ready before he left for breakfast. His best robes were laid on the end of his bed. He had his hair combed neatly, and had even trimmed it a little. He would come up straight after his last class, Charms, and get ready. Everything was planned out perfectly.

The only thing left to do was wait and see what would happen.

By the time James got into the Charms classroom, he was seriously peeved. The whole entire day had been slow, with his professors asking random questions that no one could ever know the answer to. Not even Remus could answer all of them. Finally, lunch had come and James sat on his bed, frustrated.

Charms could not be more different than the rest of the day's classes, though. Professor Filius Flitwick, a dwarf of a man, told them to immediately get out their quills and parchment. James and Sirius obliged, putting their wands down. For the first few minutes of class, Flitwick had them copy down the proper techniques of the Banishing Charm. First, one had to focus on their target. Then, a sweeping motion was performed with the wand. A white light would burst from the end, sending the object away.

Professor Flitwick had pillow cushions set out, with a large box on the other side of the room.

"Everyone!" he squeaked. "I want you all to perform the charm on your cushions. Aim for the box!"

All at once, the entire class, which was fully made up of Gryffindors, started shouting "_Depulso!_"

Nothing happened, and Flitwick strode to the front of the room once more. "Class! I would like for you to focus! Nothing will ever be accomplished without a little mind power."

Instead of attempting the spell, James looked around the classroom. He watched as Frank Longbottom sent his cushion flying straight toward the box, almost like a rocket. At that moment, Flitwick started to cross the room and the pillow hit him right in the chest. It had been going so fast that the professor was thrown backwards off his feet, falling onto the ground.

James smiled to himself as Frank ran over to apologize and help the instructor. Then his eyes caught on a bright color, and he found that they had locked onto Lily Evans' red hair. He watched her close her delicate eyelids and focus, breathing in and out deeply. The emerald became visible again and she raised her wand. A white spark erupted from the end and the pillow cushion flew in a high arc through the air, falling neatly into the box.

"Well done, Miss Evans! Well done!" Professor Flitwick beamed. Lily blushed under the praise but James saw the small smile before she ducked her head.

Nothing else happened, for in that moment, a cushion walloped him in the ear. He jerked around just in time to see another one flying at him. After he ducked, he glared in the direction the pillows had come from. All he saw was Remus laughing so hard it looked like he would fall from his seat.

"Moony! Why are you laughing? Those could have seriously injured me!"

Between gasps for air, Remus pieced together what had happened. "It's just—well, Sirius was trying—and Peter as well—they were aiming at the box, I swear, but—they still don't even know what happened!" The boy doubled over in fits of laughter again. Sure enough, when James glanced toward his other friends, they were so focused on what they were doing that little else was affecting them. None of their pillows were going anywhere near the box, nor were they going remotely close to that side of the classroom in general.

James flicked his wand lazily, and the pillow jumped off the desk onto the floor. Remus snorted and then tried for himself. The pillow flew toward the box, but stopped just short. Remus groaned and then tried again; this time, the pillow landed lightly on top of Lily's.

The end of the class signaled the end of the day. So far, Lily and Remus had been the only students to successfully get their pillow cushions into the box. After Frank's incident with Professor Flitwick, nothing else interesting had occurred.

The Marauders walked up to the Gryffindor tower, and then Sirius dragged James upstairs to the dorm.

When they closed the door, James tugged away. "Will you not pull me around, Padfoot? I can walk myself, thanks."

"You know that if I had not taken you up here, you wouldn't have come. Somehow, you would have snuck away, to the bathroom or something and skipped out on your date."

"I'm hurt that you would even consider such a thing." James' face did indeed indicate that he was emotionally injured.

Sirius chuckled and then began to comb his hair. It had gotten a bit messy throughout the day and he wanted to have in lying flat by the time he met Ramona's friend. James was not as eager as his friend and he casually ran his fingers through his unruly hair.

"No, you are not going like that. I want you in your best robes and your hair will be as perfect as I can get it. Remus taught me a few charms to deal with it."

James grumbled but changed anyways. When he looked in the mirror, her saw Sirius standing behind him, admiring himself in his robes. Both boys looked spectacular, and Sirius had his hair looking the best it had all year. He began to work on James', using any and all charms he knew of to brush the hair down.

After an hour of constant spells, James' hair was somewhat flat, with just a few patches sticking up. It would have to do, though, because Sirius was insistent on meeting the girls in ten minutes. James followed him out and down the flights of stairs that would lead him to his date.

The empty classroom's door was cracked. Sirius pushed it open the rest of the way, then stopped in his tracks.

Ramona Beesley and Carla Hayes stood together, chatting. No lights were on, only a sliver of moonlight was let in through the window. The silver light bathed the girls, who were both wearing pale white dresses. They looked even more stunning in the night.

"You guys look…great," Sirius finally managed.

"Thanks." Carla led the way toward the boys and linked her arm through Sirius'. "Shall we be on our way, then?"

Sirius was speechless again, so he just nodded. Ramona sauntered up to James and leaned over to whisper in his ear. "Thanks for agreeing to this. I know I'm not always the most likeable person."

James chuckled and tucked her arm into his. "I am quite happy that I came. Besides, you are a perfectly wonderful person."

James had figured that he may as well shower his date with compliments, in order to have the best night possible. He did, in fact, think that Ramona was a lovely person to be around; she had a nice personality and a beautiful laugh. And she did look gorgeous, James had to admit.

The walk to Hogsmeade was positively freezing. Luckily, it wasn't snowing, but the wind was still harsh. Professor Mayshore kept to herself and didn't pry into the four students' private lives.

Finally, James saw the welcoming lights of the wizarding village. They walked up the path and he swore it was ten degrees warmer in the town. Mayshore walked down the road and into a cozy café. Sirius followed and winked at his friend before entering.

It was a small area with room for twenty people. A fireplace sat in the corner, with a table next to it. Sirius and Carla sat down next to each other, leaving the two seats across open for James and Ramona.

"I'll be back in two hours. Is that enough time?" Professor Mayshore asked Sirius. He nodded and thanked her again. James didn't say anything, mainly because he could not get over the fact that his _professor_ had practically just dropped him off for a date.

A balding wizard made a beeline for the couples and passed out menus. He brought each student a mug of hot chocolate, explaining that they had run out of butterbeer the previous week.

Finally, their meals arrived, steaming and freshly cooked. Sirius and Carla were sharing a plate of spaghetti, while Ramona had ordered a soup for her and James.

All of the heat had James falling asleep, only to be jerked back to the present when Ramona leaned in. "You know, it's really nice here. Thanks for taking me."

"Oh, it's nothing. Sirius set the whole thing up." Ramona must've looked slightly hurt, because he quickly lied, "but I asked him to ask you. I was too shy to do it myself. And here we are."

She smiled and sipped the soup. James followed her example until their bowl was empty. Then, he settled back into his chair.

"Would you like to get some fresh air for a moment?" Ramona asked politely, pointing toward the front door.

James nodded and left Sirius and Carla, who were too busy exchanging flirtatious glances to notice his leave.

Once out front, in the bitter cold, Ramona grabbed James' hand. He allowed her to do so, but told himself that it was Lily instead. They stood like that for a little while, just grasping hands.

Eventually, the girl turned to look James in the eye. "I think we had better go back in now. I'm not sure what Carla wants to do with your friend, but I can't be sure that it is appropriate."

"I think we have to worry about Sirius more than her," James laughed. He held the door for his date anyways, and she walked back to the table. Ramona grabbed James' hand again, underneath the table. Once more, James let her. She kept glancing at him out of the corner of her eye, and smiling inconspicuously when she thought he couldn't see.

James was not completely bored with how the night was going, but he could not say that he was satisfied, either. It would have been much better with a certain someone, after all.

After another look from Ramona, James looked up to see Carla bent around Sirius, holding him close. His hands were tangled in her hair, and his mouth was pressed firmly to hers. All James could do was stare, as his best friend snogged a girl right in front of him, and at the dinner table, at that.

Ramona and James sat awkwardly together until they saw Professor Mayshore returning. James kicked his friend's leg beneath the table and he broke apart from Carla, his face flushed.

"What'd you do that for, mate? We were having the time of our lives!"

"I'm sorry to have disturbed you, then," James said drily, "but Mayshore is walking in right now."

At that moment, the professor approached the table. Sirius paid the server and then walked out of the restaurant, Carla still trying to be as close to him as she could. James trailed after his professor, still holding Ramona's hand.

When the five approached the castle entrance, Ramona pulled James back, preventing him from following the others in. "I had a really great time tonight, James. You?"

"Oh, er—yeah, I did. Thanks for coming, but would you like to go in now?" he replied awkwardly.

Instead of commenting on James' eagerness to be inside, Ramona turned toward James. She leaned closer, closer, until their faces were an inch apart. Her eyes closed, and James realized what was about to happen. And he didn't want it to.

James jerked out of Ramona's grasp and spun around to face Hogwarts. She looked at him with confusion all over her face. "James?"

"I can't. Not with—not now, I mean." He turned and walked up the stairs, not stopping until he was within the confines of his dormitory.

James was disgusted with himself. Why had he agreed to go to the dinner in the first place? He had let her hold his hand! Why had he led her on, only to crush her in the end? He hadn't even checked if Ramona Beesley had made it inside….

Sirius had never bothered to ask what had happened with Ramona. James had never volunteered the information. Remus seemed to know not to ask, and James suspected that he had told Peter not to pry. He was okay with that; he had avoided Ramona since that humiliating night.

Now it was February, and the Valentine's Day Hogsmeade visit was approaching. Sirius was accompanying Remus, Peter, and James for the day. They would wander the streets, visiting Honeydukes, the sweetshop of the village. Afterwards, they'd get butterbeers in the Three Broomsticks, buy a few items in Zonko's Joke Shop, and sneak out to the Shrieking Shack. They spent enough time there as it was, but James had said that he just felt like breaking the rules for the day.

Remus had evidently just gone through another transformation. The last full moon had been the most painful yet, but he was able to wander the Hogwarts grounds with his best friends at his side.

The morning of the Hogsmeade visit dawned bright and early. James was up first and woke the rest of the boys. They went down for breakfast and then waited until after the students going to Hogsmeade were dismissed.

The Marauders did not feel like staying with the group to get to the neighboring village. Instead, they would go on their own, and arrive around the same time. The four boys had found a route that would take them all the way the previous month.

James had been staring at the Marauder's Map, when he saw a peculiar empty area behind a statue. It did not seem necessary for the statue to be there, nor was the space behind it important. He had reported his discovery to Sirius, who had then told Remus and Peter. All four boys went to the corridor on a Saturday while the sixth years had Apparating lessons. The area was empty, making it the perfect time to snoop around. After trying several spells on the statue, and finally just asking politely, the statue opened up, revealing a dark tunnel. James slid down, followed by his friends. They walked for what felt like an eternity, but at last saw a door. The door ended up leading into Honeydukes' storeroom, making the passage an easy in and out of Hogwarts.

This would be the first time that the four boys used the secret passage instead of just going with the school. James was excited, as was Sirius, but Remus was worried about getting into trouble. He kept muttering everything that could go wrong on the way to the statue.

"Will you calm down, Moony?" Sirius asked, agitated. "You've been mumbling the entire time."

"Also, we're not going to get into any trouble, I'll have you know," added James.

"How can you be so sure about that? What if McGonagall checks the list of students that left and compares it with students around the school? We would be-"

"Remus. No professor is going to check every single room in the castle. If they do, they're mad. As far as anyone knows, we are sitting in Hogwarts for the day, being good little boys and studying hard." Remus snorted; he didn't think that James and Sirius had ever studied hard in their lives.

"You know, I think I'll trust you for the day. We'd better not get into any trouble. No one can catch us."

"And they won't. Now come on, or we'll be there too late!"

The Marauders had arrived at the one-eyed witch on the third floor. James tapped it and said, "_Dissendium_". That particular spell had taken a while to figure out, but Remus had thought to research a little before asking the statue to move the first time.

The witch sprang aside to give the boys passage. They slid down, one by one, and then started their long trek to Hogsmeade.

When the hour was drawing to a close, James paused, causing everyone behind him to run into him. He grabbed the handle to the wooden door and pulled. Light streamed into the underground route, causing Remus to go momentarily blind. James ushered his friends through, and then climbed the wooden stairs to see if the coast was clear. He emerged, last of the four behind the counter of the Hogsmeade sweetshop.

Honeydukes was filled with candies of all different kinds. Acid Pops, Fizzing Whizbees, and Pepper Imps lined one wall, and Chocolate Frogs, Cockroach Clusters, and Ice Mice lined another. Hogwarts students were bustling all around, trying to buy their favorite sweets. The Marauders were able to diffuse into the crowd unnoticed. They bought a few bags of candy to divide between the four of them. Then they were on their way.

The air outside was still chilly, and it reminded James of his date with Ramona Beesley. Then again, everything those days seemed to remind him. He led the way toward the Three Broomsticks, passing the post office. It was filled with owls of all sorts, from barn owls to pygmy, to carry any letter imaginable.

The Three Broomsticks was the main inn of Hogsmeade. It was great for any students to drop by for a butterbeer, especially during the winter. As it was, James and his friends bought a bottle each, but took them to go, instead of staying in the warmth as usual.

They walked to the Zonko's Joke Shop, which had enough tricks to satisfy even Sirius and James. The two boys bought a couple different items, mostly to make new pranks. Then it was back into the cold.

"Shrieking Shack, right, mate?" James asked Sirius as they walked out of the town, clutching their warm drinks.

"Yep. We are going to just hang out around there for the rest of the day. And then we can just use that passage back to Hogwarts. I think I left something in there last month anyways."

"Do you mind, Moony, if we go?" Remus was startled by James' thoughtfulness. In all honesty, he hadn't been up to visiting, but now that someone actually cared enough to ask, it seemed to be okay.

"No, we can go. Gives me a chance to tidy up the place before next time."

Peter had been silent for most of the day, which was unlike him. Now, however, he spoke up. "Do you think that the villagers still think it's haunted? The Shack?"

"I hope so. It'll keep them safe," Remus said.

The residents of Hogsmeade had heard the howls and screams of Remus when he was a werewolf. They had therefore believed that the Shrieking Shack was haunted, and warned each other to stay away. Remus encouraged the rumor, and apparently so did their headmaster, Dumbledore.

"We may as well go inside, then. Better than standing in the cold all afternoon, eh?" Remus had stopped at the gate to the Shack, but now he pushed it open. He led the way for the other Marauders, letting them into their monthly home.

It was filthy, littered with broken furniture and trash. Remus grudgingly started cleaning up the mess. His friends helped after a while, and soon the area was almost spotless. Almost. Then, the boys sat down on the creaky floorboards and talked until the sun went down and it was time to return to the school.

The final Quidditch match of the season was approaching and James was training harder than ever. If he caught the Snitch before the game dragged out, Gryffindor would win. If Gryffindor won against Ravenclaw, then they would win the Quidditch Cup, which was the honor that all the houses wanted. Gryffindor had won every year that James had been on the team, since his second year. He had never failed to catch the Snitch yet, but he was not looking forward to the match. Ever since the Christmas holidays, James Potter had wanted to play as a Chaser. He was going to tell Eaton after today's match, and then show off his skills. Hopefully Eaton would not view the switch as an act of betrayal. That would mean that he had seriously overreacted.

The day before the Quidditch match, the Marauders were spending their time in the library, mainly to keep Remus company. He had already begun to study for final exams, and Peter would occasionally glance over his meager notes. James and Sirius mostly just talked too loud and annoyed Madame Pince, the librarian.

"Oi! Sirius, mate, come over here and have a look!" James shouted, fully aware of the scowls from the other students.

"I can't see you! Where are you?" Sirius yelled back. Madame Pince was not anywhere close yet, and they planned on being distractions as long as they could.

"Next to the Restricted Section! Just follow the sound of my voice!"

Sirius started to sing to a made-up tune as he meandered among the aisles. "Wherrre arrrrrrrrrre you? Jaaaaaaaames, I need to fiiiiiiind you!"

James couldn't keep himself from laughing, and he tried to stifle to sound as soon as it came out.

Once Sirius Black had gotten close enough to see James, he raised his voice. "Mate, I think we should sneak in!"

"Where do you mean?"

"In there!" Sirius made an overly dramatic hand gesture towards entrance to the Restricted Section.

"Oh, do you mean the Restricted Section?" Both boys were still yelling across the library, and Madame Pince was walking toward them with fury in her eyes. All of the students present were packing to leave, laughing, or looking as angry as the librarian. Even Remus did not look amused.

"Course I do! Let's go before-" Madame Pince had grabbed Sirius by the ear and cut him off with a quick spin toward her.

James didn't have to be close to hear her hissing. "Just what do you think you are doing, mister? This is a library, and we will have peace. Both of you can leave. Now." When neither boy moved, she shook Sirius, hard, and shouted, "OUT?" James grabbed his things and smiled at Sirius. It wasn't over yet.

"Madame Pince," he called. "I need to check out a book, please."

"You will not check out a book in my library ever again, Potter. I don't care if you fail to turn in homework. NEVER AGAIN! Now, both of you come with me. I am tired of your ignorant disturbances. We are going to see the Headmaster." The short, gray-haired librarian took Sirius' ear again, and then hooked her nails into James'.

The two pranksters were not worried though. No professor or staff member alike had ever taken them to Albus Dumbledore before; he doubted they would start now. Behind Madame Pince's back, he exchanged thumbs-up with his best friend, and threw a smile over his shoulder at Remus. He didn't catch the look he got in return, but he was pretty confident that it contained some admiration and respect.

As Pince led them through the library, half the students grinned smugly at each other, and then went back to studying. James couldn't be sure, but he got the feeling that not all of the students were pleased with what he had done. That was odd; usually everyone was looking up to James Potter. Everyone wanted to do what he did, and be who he was. Maybe it was just the stress of the looming exams.

The library doors opened and James stumbled. In stepped Lily Evans and none other than Severus Snape. Everyone paused, even the librarian, at the sudden tension in the air.

"What'd you do this time, Potter? Or was it just the mere fact of you being here that got on everyone's nerves?"

James didn't answer; he didn't want to do anything in front of an adult. Madame Pince threw them out of the open doors and yelled after them, "And stay out!"

Sirius looked at James and they both started laughing. "Mate, that's the best we've done so far! Sirius gasped.

"Maybe we can do it again," James said, though his heart wasn't in the words. For some reason, he felt bad about disturbing valuable study time. He knew for a fact that if anyone tried to talk to him when he was cramming for O.W.L.s, he'd snap, possibly to the point of throwing some spells. What gave him permission to do that to someone else? Instead of getting the chance to ponder that out loud to his best friend, Severus Snape walked out.

"Better not even try it without your precious little Lily to protect you," James taunted, unable to stop himself.

"I don't need protection. Besides, at least she wants to be around me. I suppose I'm the best person to talk to, though, if all you want to do is bash James Potter," Snape reasoned. James saw the girl in question standing inside the library doors, watching for any sign of trouble.

"Don't test me, Snivellus," James said quietly. "I'm not in the mood for this today."

"Are you used to everything revolving around you, Potter? Because I don't really care. I honestly don't give a rat's bottom about whether or not you are in the mood. Take your sissy feelings to some girl, but not to me."

So far, Sirius had been silent, just listening to the conversation play out. Now, he stepped in for his friend's sake. "I'm done with this. Snape, we can settle this once and for all. A duel, but not inside the castle this time. Outside, next to the Forbidden Forest."

Snape sighed in exasperation. "We've already tried to duel, you fool. Bloody Filch caught us and threw us in detention. Unless you want that again."

Sirius sneered. "You'll be there, tomorrow night at sundown. If you're not a coward."

Snape got very red in the face. "You don't know anything about cowardice," he whispered, his voice dangerously low.

"I know a bloody lot more than you do!" Sirius yelled back.

"So what do you do every month, then? If you're not running away?"

James finally understood where this conversation was going. He had suspected something was wrong since the first word, but only now did the problem surface. He turned to Sirius, whose face was ashen, and then back to his enemy.

"What?" he whispered.

"You heard me. You think that nobody notices, but I do. Every month, you and your friends leave the castle. You go down to the tree, the living one. And then I can't see anymore. I know that-"

Sirius had recovered enough to retaliate. "You don't know anything! And if you had any sense, you'd keep your nose out of other people's business!" He grabbed James arm and dragged him away from the scene, away from Severus Snape, away from Lily, who was still watching anxiously by the door.

They heard the library door open and close, signaling Snape's entrance. They wouldn't be bothered now. Sirius let go of James, but James grabbed the sleeve of his friends shirt and walked as fast as he could down to the first floor. Once there, he found an empty classroom to discuss the current situation.

"Prongs, do you think he knows?"

"How can he? Remus has never transformed in front of anyone. He hasn't even transformed in front of us! And we keep our own transformations to a minimum, and in obscure places. There is no possible way for him to know!"

"But he does. Somehow. Maybe not everything, but he is suspicious. Soon enough, he will try to find out more information. If he tells, Remus gets kicked out of school. And we will be thrown into Azkaban for being illegal Animagi," Sirius said grimly. Azkaban was the wizard's prison. It was on its own little island of the coast. No one who had gone in guilty ever came out.

"We can't let that happen. But how can we keep him quiet? Threaten him?"

"It won't work, Prongs. He isn't scared of us. We could get him kicked out."

"You mean frame him for a crime he didn't commit? No. I'm not doing it, Sirius. And if you do, I'll make sure everyone knows. We aren't going to fall that low."

"Then what? Nothing we do or say will keep Snivellus from talking. But if he does, we are all goners."

James thought for a moment. "We'll do what we have to do. We are going to sit and wait. If I'm right, Snape will want to know more before he rats us out. We just have to be more careful during the month. Make sure he doesn't see us and such."

"Do we tell them? Remus and Peter?"

"No," James said firmly. "Remus will just worry needlessly and tell us not to come any more. Then he'll just hurt himself. We can't let that happen, either."

"Fine. We wait then. And keep it to ourselves. Am I missing anything?" Sirius sarcastically asked.

"No, it's all good now. Nothing will happen," James said, trying to calm himself more than his friend. He muttered the same words over and over, both in his head and out loud, all the way up to Gryffindor tower. The Fat Lady accepted their password and admitted them to the cheery common room. All of the students were chatting happily, ready for the Quidditch match tomorrow. Many wished James good luck as he passed, heading to the dormitory. He didn't hear any of it. Nothing was going through his mind except the conversation he had just had. Suddenly, he didn't feel as much of a part of Hogwarts as he would have liked to.

The day of the Quidditch Cup match turned out to be a horrible day. Rain was pouring, streaming down the windows and creating an unusual chill everywhere. Sirius Black leaned against a pillar, waiting for James to finish his breakfast. Remus was already in the stands with Peter. Together, they were casting charms to dry the water from three seats, and then keep the rain from falling in that specific area.

Sirius was just thinking about how rotten the day was when James rounded the corner from the Great Hall.

"You ready, mate? No pressure or anything, but if we win this, we win the Cup. All of us want to win the Cup, Prongs." Sirius was as keyed up as the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

"Thank you, Sirius. Remind me to come find you if I ever need a pep talk."

Together, the best friends walked toward the Quidditch pitch. It wasn't that far from the castle, but by the time James reached the locker rooms, his clothes were drenched, as were Sirius'. Sirius was just about to walk to the stadium when he remembered.

"Prongs! Hand me your glasses!"

" What—why? I need them to see, you know." Still, he handed his rectangular glasses to his friend. Sirius grabbed the frame and took off running toward the seats where Remus would be waiting.

Remus saw him approaching and smiled gratefully.

"Perfect, thanks, Sirius. This will help him a lot." The boys exchanged the lenses and Remus took out his wand. "_Impervius_," he muttered. "That should do it. Take these back before the match starts, then." Sirius didn't even bother complaining; he took the glasses and sprinted back to the locker rooms, where James was blindly waiting.

James sighed in relief when his friend got close enough to be recognized. "What did you do? It's a good thing you got back in time; I need them in five minutes." He snatched the glasses and jammed them onto his face, failing to hide his wince as they hit his nose.

"Your dearest friend Remus charmed them to repel water. Now you will be able to see the entire time, without having to clean your glasses often."

"Are you—thanks, mate! Thank Moony for me, too."

Sirius had to slip out then because Marcus Eaton called for attention.

There was a feeling that only being cheered for could bring. James felt it every time he walked onto the Quidditch pitch. He heard the cheers of the crowd, of the fans, in his bones. His entire being felt the roars of happiness, the boos of the opponent. It was an exhilarating experience that James only got three times a year. It was one of the best parts of Quidditch.

This time was no different. James walked onto the pitch, following only the captain, Marcus Eaton. He felt the excitement of the crowd. It overpowered the rain and storms. He felt nothing else. He watched as Eaton shook hands with the Ravenclaw captain, who happened to be none other than Carla Hayes. Her eyes briefly flickered to catch James', and he saw the fury in them. James could only suspect that Ramona Beesley had told her best friend everything.

Then the players were told to mount their brooms. _Three… two… one,_ James counted down in his head. He rose into the air with the other thirteen people, both teammates and opponents. The wind tossed them like boats in the ocean. It blew through James Potter's hair, ruffling it. The rain flew toward him, stinging each place it hit. His glasses remained dry, though, and his sight remained unimpeded.

It was a glorious day to fly, in James' opinion. As long as he could see, he could fly. And as long as he could fly, he could catch the Snitch and win the match. The rain and wind would distract the other team, who had not practiced in the elements as much as Gryffindor. They were already being thrown off course, having a hard time with the Quaffle. James watched for the Ravenclaw Seeker, who was flying opposite him. The sturdy boy was swinging his head around, attempting to clear his sight. James laughed darkly to himself and resumed his search.

James Potter had never felt the need to pay attention to the game's commentary. He figured that whatever happened, he was good enough to still catch the Snitch and win the match. It was just another unnecessary distraction that was a part of Quidditch. So he didn't really notice that Ravenclaw was slowly taking the lead until Eaton called a time out.

"Potter, anytime now. We are down by one hundred and twenty. If they gain any more, we won't be able to stop them from winning. Keep doing what you are doing. Score if you can. Catch the bloody Snitch, Potter!"

James kept his eyes peeled from that point, watching for a tiny speck of gold. He also focused on what the commentator was saying. He listened as Ravenclaw scored again, to a huge groan from the Gryffindor side. Their Seeker had not found the Snitch yet, either, which was an obvious perk. James kept scanning, still seeing no sign at of the ball.

Ravenclaw scored once more, and again. Now they were one hundred fifty points up. Even if James caught the Snitch now, they'd only tie. He finally felt the pressure drop onto his shoulders. His stomach turned and for the first time, he got the faintest whiff of failure. Instead of succumbing to the disappointment, James Potter crouched low and dove. He circled the area at speeds that would be impossible for most brooms. His frustration flowed from him, catching in the wind and blowing away.

At once, he saw the golden orb. It was on the other end of the Quidditch pitch. Gryffindor and Ravenclaw would still be tied. They couldn't win the Cup that way.

Fifty feet left.

Thirty.

Only ten now.

A voice crackled through the air, parting the curtains of water. "And Gryffindor scores! Potter has seen the Snitch, if he catches it now, Gryffindor will win!"

James reached from his broom, stretching his arm as far as it would go. The Snitch made a wild dive to the left and James' hand darted after it. The Snitch tried to dodge to the right, but before it could, James' extended fingers clamped over the metal. He pulled his broom up and raised the ball high above his head. Deafening cheers erupted from the stands and nobody even needed the announcement that Gryffindor had won. The team rocketed toward James, surrounding him. They hugged him, still in the air, until he almost toppled off his broom. Then they landed, still huddled up.

Professor McGonagall walked onto the Quidditch pitch, holding a huge trophy. Headmaster Dumbledore stood up from his place in the stands and snapped. The banners surrounding the pitch flashed red and gold, Gryffindor's colors. He held up his hand for silence and immediately got it.

He spoke, his voice magically booming around the students. "Congratulations, Gryffindor. Another splendid win on your behalf. We cannot, though, forget the opponents, who played a good game. Well done, Ravenclaw. You should be proud of yourselves. And now, we party."

The Gryffindors cheered loudly, and then stumbled over one another to get out of the stadium the fastest. Everyone would be heading back to the common room, where Sirius would throw the largest party of the year. They'd celebrate the win of their house, and drink butterbeer nicked from the kitchens. Miniature fireworks from Zonko's would be lit off. Everything would be festive and cheery.

Remus, Peter, and Sirius were waiting in the locker room for James. "Congrats, mate," Sirius called as the team walked in. "You played well today, your best yet, I'd say."

"Thanks, I thought so, too," James said, pleased with the way everything had played out. He changed into dry clothes and led the way outside.

Students were still running toward the castle, and James fell into step behind them. The joggers stopped inside the entrance hall, where Filch was making everyone wait for Flitwick, who was charming the water to literally dance off of everyone. James waited his turn, and then waited for his friends to be finished. Then they all walked up the stairs to Gryffindor tower. The Fat Lady smiled as though she knew something they didn't when Peter told her the password. She swung open and let James go first. He had barely stepped through the portrait hole when hands grabbed him from all sides, pulling him in. His fellow house members were cheering and shouting. Some were even trying to claim that they had something to do with the win.

"I gave Potter some special juice this morning. It was spiked with Felix Felicis," James heard a sixth year mutter to his friend. He snorted and kept walking, marveling at the party put together solely for him.

Sooner than he would have liked, James was tugged out of the center of the room, where he was recounting the capture of the Snitch for the seventh time.

"What are you doing? They love me!" he hissed at Sirius.

"Get over yourself, mate. We promised Snape a duel tonight. Look outside; the sun is going down."

James turned and saw that his friend was right. And no matter what, James would not get called a coward by his enemy for not showing up. They had to go. James didn't even look to see if Sirius was following, he just took off through the crowd, yelling "bathroom" if anyone paused.

He was still running on the first floor. The panting behind him told him that Sirius was indeed following him. It was only as they burst through the front doors that James realized he had forgotten to ask Marcus Eaton about switching positions.

The Forbidden Forest in the distance looked foreboding at that hour of the evening. The trees were blowing in the wind, and clouds rolled across the place where the moon would be, if it weren't new. Sometime between the afternoon common room party and now, the rain had stopped. Now the ground just squished under the feet of two troublemaking boys.

For some reason, James Potter could not imagine the night going well. It just seemed like something had to go wrong. They could not be so lucky as to duel in the Forbidden Forest, without a sort of punishment. It seemed impossible.

Even so, Sirius led down toward the lake, which contained the giant squid. It was rumored to be friendly, but no student had ever wanted to test the theory. Past the lake lay the Forest. Sirius walked straight in, as though he had done it before. Which, James reasoned, they both had; even Remus and Peter had tagged along. They knew where the paths were, and Sirius took the one that lay just inside the tree line. It circled the entire wooded area, but James had promised himself he'd never have to walk that far again.

Sirius stepped on a twig, which snapped with a loud crack. He stopped abruptly and turned to James. "Shhhhhh!"

"Are you kidding me, mate? You step on a branch and tell _me_ to be quiet? You're mental, you know." James shook his head and followed his friend, who had begun to walk again.

After a quarter of an hour passed, James tapped Sirius' shoulder. "Do you know how long this is going to take? We do have a duel to get to."

"Merlin's beard, James. If you cared to remember, we never told Snivellus an exact location. So he could be anywhere around here."

James perked up. "I may not remember that part, but I do recall you stating that we would be dueling _outside_ of the Forest. Yet we are currently _inside_ it."

"I know where we are!" Sirius snapped. "I wanted to sneak up on him. Get him down before he could do anything. I guess we are going to have to do this the proper way, though, aren't we?"

James didn't know how to answer. Attack when your opponent had his back turned? James' parents might have let him be most of the time, but they had taught him the basics of being a man. And they had said that only a coward attacked a man who wasn't looking. All of this made James secretly glad that his best friend wanted to get out of the Forest. Maybe then he could teach Sirius what his parents had taught him.

Out of the trees they walked, and immediately caught sight of a shadow standing not two hundred feet away.

When Sirius came up, Severus Snape turned around. He smiled a cruel smile, like he would enjoy it if Sirius was injured. Like he would enjoy the pain. James looked away in disgust.

"I was beginning to worry you wouldn't show, Black," Snape said slowly.

"Like I would ever go back on a promise. Even if it was with a scumbag like yourself."

"Potter is your second, I take it? Odd, isn't it? Seems like just yesterday this exact thing happened. Except _he_ was going to be dueling, not you." James saw the humor in Snape's comment and had to stop himself from cracking a smile. Sirius, for one, would not understand.

"Of course he's my second. And who's yours?"

The greasy-haired boy looked at Sirius disdainfully. "I didn't think I'd need one for the night. Not if the duel is against you. Obviously."

"Well it seems like you are more talk than action. Let's cut to it, Snivellus."

James backed out of the way, leaving a wide circle around the two boys. Snape stuck to the rules and sunk into a low bow, never taking his eyes off of Sirius, who grinned and simply dipped his head. They turned and walked to opposite end of the invisible circle. When they had both turned, wands were raised and spells cast.

"_Aguamenti!" _Personally, James thought he would have chosen a different first spell than the one Sirius had picked.

"_Expelliarmus!_" Snape cried. Sirius' wand flew out of his hand. Instead of making a grab for it, Sirius jumped up and ran toward Snape, as if to attack. Right before he pounced, a high-pitched voice rang out through the air.

"Stop right now or I have you expelled immediately!"

James turned, his whole body filled with dread, to look into the beady eyes of Professor McGonagall.

This was nothing like the last duel that Sirius and James had been caught at. Filch would handle them himself, handing out whatever punishment he felt necessary. But this, this was Professor Minerva McGonagall. She was a whole different force entirely.

And she was livid. "AGAIN? Mr. Potter, you and Mr. Snape here were already caught once dueling. I personally remember, because your detentions were in my classroom after hours. I had to stay and help you. Mr. Black, you were there as well. Luckily, Filch got to you before anything happened, but this—I am appalled!"

"Professor, it wasn't-" Sirius began.

"Quiet!" she barked. "I don't care what it was or what it wasn't. All I know is that you both cast spells at each other. And if that wasn't enough, you ran at him! Mr. Black, are you too good for wizardry? Would you like to use your mundane fighting skills against any magical opponent from here on out? Because I assure you, I can make that happen." McGonagall's voice had dropped so low that James had to strain to hear her. He took a step back to look around.

Sirius was standing in the exact spot where McGonagall had somehow frozen him, preventing the fight that was about to happen. He looked surprised and angry, confused and nervous. James could tell that Sirius didn't think this was such a great idea after all. James himself was feeling the same way, and he wished that he hadn't agreed to support his friend with this.

Severus Snape hadn't said a word, not against Sirius and not to save his own neck. He didn't seem capable of saying anything. He just stared at the ground, nervous that anything at all would happen to him. This would be the second time in a year that he had gotten in serious trouble because of two of the Marauders.

"Professor?" James started timidly.

McGonagall whipped around to face him. Her eyes narrowed. "Just what do you have to say for yourself, Mr. Potter? I know your parents; they are very respectable. I would have expected them to raise a better son."

The blow hit low, knocking the words out of James before he could stop them. The shame was almost unbearable, anyways. "What are you going to do with us?"

She looked surprised. "Me? I'm not going to do anything."

Sirius' face would have made anyone think it was Christmas morning. "You mean, we're not going to get any punishment?" James couldn't believe their luck, either. Only, when his professor spoke again, his heart fell into his shoes.

"Oh no, Mr. Black. You misunderstood. _I_ am not going to do anything with you, because I do not have the authority. Oh no, you three are going straight to Professor Dumbledore's office."

James had never been to the headmaster's office, nor had he wanted to. The only reason he would be going is if he was in major trouble, which, he supposed, he was.

Albus Dumbledore was a quiet man, at least to the Marauders. They didn't see him out of his office unless it was for a feast. Sometimes he'd show up for a Quidditch match, but even then James was not focused on him.

Dumbledore was much older than most of the professors. He had long white hair and a beard that fell to the middle of his chest. He wore robes of many colors, most of which never matched his hats. Maybe one day he would be better at that, James found himself thinking.

James, Snape, and Sirius all walked solemnly behind McGonagall, following her to what was sure to be their doom. McGonagall stopped in front of two stone gargoyles and said, "Ice Mice." The stone figures leapt aside and revealed a large door with a brass knocker. The professor knocked twice, and then let it fall for a third loud rap.

After a minute of no answer, James though that perhaps the headmaster was not in. They would not be able to be punished at this hour of the night, and could return peacefully to their common rooms. Right when James was about to tell Professor McGonagall this, a tired sounding voice called out. "Come in," it said, rather slowly and quietly.

McGonagall opened the door for the three trouble-makers. They walked in, and James had to stop to marvel at the office.

It was huge, with a desk in the center. Surfaces rose all around them, with books scattered everywhere. Upon a table near the desk, many spindly instruments sat. Some were moving, and others were whirring. In the back of the room sat a wire perch, as if for a bird. A pan sat underneath, stained with burn markings. James could only guess that the pan kept the floor free from droppings.

James didn't even notice the elderly man, who was standing in a corner with his back turned, until he spoke.

"What seems to be the problem, Minerva?"

"Professor, these three were out dueling by the Forbidden Forest. Mr. Potter and Mr. Black had been inside the trees before the duel began. And when Mr. Black was Disarmed, he ran at Mr. Snape like a Muggle. I didn't know the best way to deal with them, as Filch had caught the same three attempting to duel before the Christmas holidays."

Dumbledore held up his hand. "So, if I hear correctly, you three have been getting into much trouble lately. And why were you out after curfew, might I ask? Sit, please." James was the first to sit, followed by the others. Nobody seemed to have a good enough answer for the headmaster, so the silence pursued. Dumbledore looked at the three and rested his gaze on James. "Mr. Potter, James? Would you like to tell me?"

James thought privately that that was the last thing he wanted to do, but he began anyways. "Well, sir, it started a few days ago. Sirius and I had gotten in trouble in the library for being a bit too loud." The twinkle in the headmaster's eyes made James think that he knew that they had been more than a bit loud. "And when we were thrown out, Snape here followed us. He provoked Sirius, and Sirius challenged him to a duel."

Dumbledore turned his eye to look at Snape. "And did you, Severus, ever consider not taking him up on the offer?" His voice was kind, even gentle, when he talked to the boys.

Snape looked ashamed with himself. "I did, Headmaster. But then he said I'd be a coward if I didn't show." The poor boy looked close to tears. Which was exactly how James felt on the inside.

"I see. And you couldn't leave your dignity on the ground, could you? But Sirius, why did you feel the need to duel? Are words not enough with you young people these days?"

"Sir, I was angry. I didn't realize what I had done until I had done it. And then it was too late to take it back."

"And did Severus say anything else after the duel had been set?" James shivered inwardly. It was as though he knew. But that was impossible. Nobody knew of Remus' condition except the Marauders.

All three boys shook their heads quickly, almost too fast. If the headmaster noticed, he didn't say anything. "What happened tonight, James?"

James felt like Dumbledore's eyes could see directly into him, as if he was being x-rayed. If he lied, the headmaster would be sure to find out. "We went down past the lake and into the woods. I was following Sirius, thinking he knew exactly where Snape would be. After a while, I asked, and we headed out of the Forbidden Forest. Snape was waiting, and we approached. They bowed to each other and backed up, preparing for the duel. Both cast harmless spells, _Aguamenti_ and _Expelliarmus_. When Sirius' wand flew out of his hand, he didn't try to find it. He got up and ran at Snape. Sir," he added.

Everyone sat in silence for a few minutes. Albus Dumbledore rested his chin on his long fingers. James and Sirius looked around the room awkwardly. It was only then did James realize that Professor McGonagall was no longer behind them. Severus Snape was still looking at his feet, as if they could somehow transport him from this room. Or maybe rewind the clock to before the duel, though James knew that nothing could achieve that.

Finally, the headmaster's calm voice spoke again. "I think you have all learned your lesson for the evening, have you not? Just being in here must cause anxiety. But you may go. Do not let this become a regular occurrence, I warn you. Next time, I will not be as lenient."

"Thank you, sir," James breathed in relief. He got up to leave the office when he heard a melodic song. It was a bird song, that much was clear, but James had never heard anything like it. He turned and saw a beautiful bird sitting on the perch in the back. It was large, with red and gold plumage. The bird stared at James with somber eyes.

"I see you've met my pet bird, Fawkes. He is a phoenix, a bird that bursts into flames and is reborn from the ashes when his time comes. A truly magnificent creature, really."

"Yes, sir," James stuttered, still surprised. He turned and tried not to trip over anything during his departure.

He was just walking out of the room when Dumbledore's voice called out behind him. "Goodnight, Mr. Potter." James didn't even stop to reply. It had been such a close call. He watched Sirius, up ahead, turn toward the Gryffindor common room. When the portrait hole opened, loud cheers and music were audible and James realized the Quidditch after-party would still be going on. It seemed like a lifetime had passed between the morning win and now. He couldn't force himself into the celebration, so instead, he in the direction of the library.

It was silent, with only a few students present. James Potter grabbed a book (_Quidditch Through the Ages_), sat down near a window, and began to read.

The days passed in a blur. One day it was March, then James blinked and it was May. Everything seemed to be on fast-forward. All of the students at Hogwarts were stressed, to say the least. For fifth years, Ordinary Wizarding Levels, or O.W.L.s were approaching. Those would determine which subjects the students could study for their future careers. Seventh years were preparing for their Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Test, also known as N.E.W.T.s. Specific careers accepted only students with certain marks on their N.E.W.T.s. All of the other juveniles would be sitting end of course exams, which were rumored to be just a little bit less difficult than the O.W.L.s.

James was spending most of his free time in the library, reviewing topics only discussed in the beginning of the year. He had never failed exams before, and he wasn't starting now.

Remus and Sirius would stay late with their friend. They put in as much time as he did in the last few weeks approaching the end of the year.

Peter was having trouble remembering the information. He would learn it, and even understand some, but it wouldn't stick in his mind for more than an hour. Memory charms were prohibited, so that was out of the question. The only thing left for him to do was study in the library with the others.

There was now only one week remaining until exams. Most students had dark circles under their eyes, especially the older teenagers, from lack of sleep. James was tired all the time, but this week he was planning on getting extra rest. A few fifth years had already been to the infirmary due to stress. One Hufflepuff broke down crying in her class, sobbing that she wasn't good enough and may as well drop out right away.

Even though they saw what was happening, the professors were harder than ever before. Slughorn was assigning and essay a night, and McGonagall had them reviewing every spell they had ever learned. Only Professor Flitwick seemed to feel bad. He would let them practice charms from the year in class, and then gave them no homework except to study.

James now spent every minute that he wasn't in class or sleeping in the library. He even ate in there, as discretely as possible to avoid Madame Pince's prowling eyes. The librarian already kept a close watch on him because of the incident with him and Sirius. He would sit among a pile of books, skimming through each part that he felt was important.

It was on such an evening that he found himself an aisle away from Severus Snape and Lily Evans. They were studying together, that much was clear. James had not gone out of his way to pick on Snape since the duel. Now, he only did it if the boy made an easy target.

"Now, Sev, what kind of charm creates bird from the end…."

James tried to drown out the voices. Eavesdropping wasn't worth the trouble that he was sure to get into. Instead, he finally got up and moved across the library. He ended up sitting right next to Madame Pince, where the only benefit was that no one dared talk within twenty feet of her. He spent another three hours there that night, studying hard for the first exam of the many: Transfiguration.

James hardly slept at all that night. When he had gotten to his bed, he wasn't tired anymore. After he at last fell asleep, he had nightmares, which woke him every hour or so. In the morning, he was as tired as if he had not slept at all. He crawled out of bed to get ready. Transfiguration was the first exam of the day, with Defense Against the Dark Arts after lunch. That evening would bring Astronomy. James was ready.

Three long hours later, James sat with his best friends at the lunch table. He felt good about the exam, and was ready for the next. Remus was scrambling about, having random Gryffindors quiz him. When McGonagall called for all fourth years to report to take the next exam, the poor boy looked as though he would faint. James patted him on the back and walked into the Great Hall, where the four boys emerged two hours later.

The rest of the week was similar: two exams a day, plus the one for Astronomy at night. James felt confident about all of them, as did Sirius and Remus, even though the latter frantically went over the exams after each was over. Peter was the one who was most anxious. He had not found a cure to his bad memory and therefore, did not recognize a few of the test questions. No matter how much his friends reassured him, he continued to believe that he had failed and would not be returning to Hogwarts next year.

"If you don't stop moping, Wormtail, you can stay in the dorms for the rest of the time. Alone." It was this threat from James that finally stopped the boy's complaining.

Fifth year and seventh year students weren't done yet, though. The following week would bring O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s, then some peace. All of the other students had a break during the two exams. They could run around the school and the courtyard, as long as they were not loud. It was in the courtyard that young James could be found on the last of such days, hanging out and spending time with his friends.

"Moony, I bet you can't touch your nose with your tongue!" James called.

"Oh yeah? Watch me, then!" Remus' tongue barely touched the tip of his nose, but he grinned all the same. "Try a better dare next time, Prongs."

"This is how it should be," Peter muttered under his breath.

Sirius heard. "What was that, Wormtail?"

"Nothing, I was just saying that we need to meet up this summer. I like it when we have this time to ourselves. We're all happy." Indeed, it was true. Nobody had so much as frowned since the first morning, when they were told they could do anything they liked. They would laugh and joke and just show what true friendship should be. It was a bond that nothing could come between.

"Definitely. Prongs, can we do it at your place? Mum would have a heart attack if she heard you were coming to mine," Sirius said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, my parents won't mind; they think it's good to have friends visit, being the only child and all."

"Excellent. We can talk more at King's Cross. For now, let's enjoy the rest of this fine last day. Together."

"Couldn't have said it better myself, Moony," James sighed. The last days of the school year were coming. In only two weeks, everyone would have to leave to go home for the summer holidays. James was still trying to decide whether that was a good thing or bad.

James spent that evening sitting in the common room. He wanted to remember it with all the bustle of the other Gryffindors, along with the peaceful quiet that was only present when it was exceptionally late. That was the time when the room became his, and solely his. It was the best time, in his opinion.

The fire was crackling merrily in the hearth, even though it wasn't even remotely chilly outside. James watched Lily enter through the portrait hole, but for once, he did not bother flirting with her. She looked around and sat down next to the fire. It was one of the first times that they had ever enjoyed the common room together.

Three hours later, she went up to bed and, being the last one to do so, left the common room empty. James scurried upstairs to his own dorm and fetched the Marauder's Map. Then he roused the other three boys and ran back downstairs.

"It's almost time," Remus breathed, almost in awe of the parchment.

"We'll take it out before the end of the year. See how it works." James was as ready as the rest of them to see how their year-long project would turn out. And it wouldn't even have the passageways that were unknown to most Hogwartians.

For another couple of hours, the boys sat at a table, drawing and labeling and doing whatever was needed in general. Then, Remus tucked the Map under his arm and climbed up the stairs, for perhaps the last time after working on the Marauder's Map.

Everything was ready. Another week had passed. James didn't have any more classes; he just relaxed before the term was over and exams were graded. But tonight was the night. After a year of hard work, serious research, and late nights, the Marauder's Map was ready to be used for the first time. It was nowhere near complete, oh no. But it was usable now. The four boys were planning on doing a quick walk around the castle, carrying James' Invisibility Cloak in case the Map was not as good as they'd hoped.

As usual, the Marauders waited until everyone had gone to bed. Then James climbed the stairs and grabbed a certain Cloak and Map, then ran to meet his friends. Surprisingly, the nightly thundering on the stairs had not woken anyone up all year. That was completely opposite last year.

Once downstairs, they pushed the Fat Lady open, hiding under the Cloak. She had a habit of being nosy after curfew hours. When they rounded the corner, James stuffed the fabric into his robes and took off at a fast walk.

"Alright, we start at the first floor bathroom. We are going to take each floor in rounds. At the end, we will end up right here. With the Map, we shouldn't be more than an hour." Sirius was taking charge.

"Are we ready for this?" Peter whispered.

"Only one way to find out," Remus said. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Writing began to appear on the parchment in his hands. The lines swirled out from the center, until all they could see was an entire map of Hogwarts. Then, the footsteps became visible. Names were next to each pair of feet. When the piece of parchment was filled with marks all over, James located where they were standing.

"It worked. Moony, you genius, it worked! Look! Here we are!" He moved a foot to the left. His feet on the Map did the same. "I'm over here now! It's incredible!"

"Keep your voice down, Prongs, or everyone will be awake. And how would we even start to explain this?" Sirius asked. James grinned but lowered his voice all the same.

"Oh give me that." Remus snatched the precious creation from his friends, who were still gawking at it. They then turned their open mouths to him. "Are we just going to stand here all night or are we actually going to test this thing?" He started walking to the starting point. It wasn't far, but the four boys took many breaks, pausing to check the Map to see their progress.

Once they had arrived, Remus passed the parchment to Peter. "I think we should all get an opportunity to guide us. Peter will go first, and then we can decide from there. Peter, take us around this floor, and then up ad around the second. If anyone is near us, either move us out of the way or alert us. We can use the Invisibility Cloak if need be."

"You mean, I get to lead first?" Peter asked, appalled.

"I agree—why does he go first?" Sirius whined. Remus glared at him until the other boy looked away, muttering, "Fine. I'm going next, though."

Peter held the Map gently, as though it might burst into flames at any moment. "Okay, we need to walk this way for about twenty feet and take a left. Then we can continue for a while and take another left."

"Anyone could've figured that out," James started. "It's the end of the corridor, Wormtail."

Peter blushed and looked down. He seemed to have lost all confidence until Remus poked him in the back. He walked forward for a while, examining the Map. All of a sudden, he stopped. James walked right into him and cursed.

"What was that for? Can't you do-"

"Shhh! Filch is around the corridor. If we are quiet, he won't notice us. But we need to be under the Cloak; there aren't any shortcuts around here."

James grabbed his Invisibility Cloak from his pocket and threw it over the four of them. They barely fit, and all of them had to crouch down to hide their feet. Still, it was better than sitting through _another_ detention with Filch or McGonagall.

The boys crept silently past Argus Filch, hardly daring to breath. After making two more turns, Peter sighed. "Alright, we're good."

Nothing else eventful happened throughout Peter's time as guide, and the Map changed to Sirius' hands on the third floor. They walked around the entire area before noticing something.

"Prongs, look here. At those feet right there." James leaned over his friend's shoulder and immediately spotted the set of footprints. The prints were standing in a corner, too close to be doing anything good at the late hour. "Let's go kill the romance, shall we?" Sirius asked mischievously.

"We shall," answered James in the same voice. They left Remus and Peter with a wave of their hands, and threw the Cloak over themselves. It was much easier with only two people. They didn't even have to duck.

James rounded the corner and saw the couple in question, trying their best to be as close as possible yet still behind a pillar. It didn't seem to be working out very well.

"Well, well, well. What have we got here?" Sirius began, in the scratchiest voice he could produce.

The girl pulled away and stared with wide eyes at the place where the voice appeared to be coming from. "Who are you?" she cried frantically.

"Why I'm the Bloody Baron, of course." James did his best to match Sirius' gravelly voice.

The boy behind the sixth year Hufflepuff gasped. James didn't blame him. The Bloody Baron was the Slytherin ghost. He had a very unpredictable personality, and when he was visible, his clothes were stained with blood.

"I'm sorry, sir, we were-"

"Going. We were just going, sir," the boy cut the girl off. "And we're sorry to have disturbed you."

Sirius stifled a laugh and choked out, "It's alright. I understand the feeling of young love. Don't let it happen again."

James realized why his friend was going easy on the couple. It wasn't as if he didn't want to scare them; he did. But in his mind, at least, would it not be much better if the next time the couple met the Bloody Baron, they believed he was kind and understanding? They'd be in for a rude awakening.

The Hufflepuffs scrambled off toward what James assumed was their common room. He turned to Sirius ad took off the Invisibility Cloak. "That was awesome, mate! They totally believed it, too!"

Remus walked up, followed by Peter, before Sirius could reply. "Now that you two have had your fun, I think we need to get back to the Map. This cannot take too long."

"Yeah, yeah, I suppose." James rolled his eyes at Sirius, but they both knew that he would never have it any other way. The Marauders walked the floors, gasping at how well the Map worked, until they were near Gryffindor tower again.

"That's it, I guess," James said sadly.

Sirius looked upset as well, but he was better at containing it. "We've got it again next year, mate."

"Yeah, and then we can do a lot more, what with exploring and all," Remus added.

"I guess. Good job, Remus. It really is amazing." Sirius and Peter chimed in with their praise and Remus ducked his head modestly. He didn't bother denying anything, though. He just followed his friends upstairs to their dorm for one of the last nights of the school year together.

The final week included the last full moon of the school year. Remus was preparing as best he could, trying to be happy for his friends' sakes. Sirius had decided that he was the keeper of the Marauder's Map for the day, which nobody minded. They were all too busy doing nothing at all.

Remus had made lists of everything that needed to be done within the next two days. The day after tomorrow, the Hogwarts Express would pull into the Hogsmeade station and take students home. He had even made a list for each of the other boys, including what to pack. James tried to stay out of his general way, otherwise Remus would hand him something new to pack. It was a bit annoying, really, so James just ended up lying on his bed.

Peter had caught Remus' frenzied state of mind, and he, too, ran about the room, grabbing things randomly and throwing them into his trunk. He even had Sirius' polka-dot socks until Sirius snatched them back.

It was midmorning and Remus and Peter were scrambling in and out of the dorm. James was lazily reading his Quidditch book when the door burst open to reveal Remus.

"Where's Sirius?" he demanded.

James sat up and yawned. "I dunno, mate. Haven't seen him since breakfast. Why?"

"He has the Map. And I specifically said not to use it in plain sight."

"Relax, Moony. He's probably gone to scout out new passages for next year."

"If he gets it taken up," Remus began.

"You know full well that that wouldn't happen. If a professor did manage to find him with it, he'd clear it and just look like he was holding a blank piece of parchment. It'll be fine."

Remus just slammed the door and resumed packing. His trunk was almost full of anything and everything now. The only things remaining out were necessary items and a few books. And a wig, which James didn't even try to understand.

Around noon, James got up and found his friends in the Great Hall for lunch. The Hall was decorated with house colors, the House Cup hourglasses filled with pearly beads.

The House Cup was coveted by each house. It was a great honor to have, just simply showing that whatever house won had good students. Slytherin and Gryffindor were often rivals; one of the two usually won. Gryffindor was excited for this year, as they hadn't won since the year before the Marauders came to Hogwarts. It was usually due to the four boys that the house lost. In James' first year, Slytherin had won. Ravenclaw had the most points for the second year, and Hufflepuff surprised everyone by winning for the first time in twenty years in James' third year.

This year, Slytherin had been in the lead, with Gryffindor running a close second. Nobody could check now, because the points were covered a month before the last feast. It was the professors' way of getting students to try harder, which actually seemed to work.

"Prongs, have you packed yet?" Peter asked between bites of bread.

"Nope. I plan on packing tomorrow before the feast. Well, hopefully before the feast. I won't miss it, though."

Frank Longbottom walked up. "Hey Remus, James, Peter. Ready to go home?"

James smiled thoughtfully. "I think I am."

"Same her," Remus added. "But I'll miss it during the summer. Nothing like Hogwarts, you know."

"Yeah, but my mum has been worried this year. She thinks that the whole ordeal with that Voldemort guy is becoming a bigger threat. Her last letter said that more people are getting arrested every day for using the Dark Arts. And the wizard himself, I heard, is extremely powerful. The only person better is Albus Dumbledore, our headmaster!

"She wants me to make it home before anything big happens. We should be alright, because he seems to only be attacking Muggles and Muggle-borns, but she doesn't want to risk it. Dad doesn't, either. I just hope nothing terrible happens; if it does, I might not be coming back next year."

James and Remus expressed their concern for Frank. They also said as many bad things as they could about Voldemort. It seemed to be fitting for the occasion. Peter looked on awkwardly, as if he'd rather be anywhere but there.

Finally, it was time. Remus began his trek down the sloping grass toward the Whomping Willow. The Willow had been planted his first year at Hogwarts. It covered an entrance to the Shrieking Shack in Hogsmeade, and prevented anyone from entering by attacking. The tree would flail its branches anytime a living creature got close. Those wooden clubs could knock the breath out of someone, and in worse cases, knock them completely unconscious. It had happened to a sixth year who wanted to be funny and see what was inside the tree. He'd been in the infirmary for a week.

A small cat, which was always present to help the Marauders if Peter was away, ran through the swinging branches to press a knot on the tree. The branches froze immediately, in mid-swing. Remus stepped through and crawled to his monthly home.

James was just finishing dinner when he heard a shout.

"Prongs! You'll never believe it!"

"There you are, Sirius. We've been looking for you all day."

"I was trying to find someone." James was getting annoyed already at his friend's vague answers.

"Okay, mate. And why were you trying to find them?"

"I had to tell them some very important information. It will help us out in the long run."

"Wow, thanks for the explanation. If that's all…."

"No, fine, I was trying to find Snivellus. He agreed to meet in the courtyard after I cornered him this morning."

James' patience was wearing out. "Merlin's beard, Sirius. Why did you need to talk to that git?"

"Later. Tonight is the night, correct? We'll be meeting Remus after the moon rises?"

"Yeah, he still doesn't want us seeing his transformation. I dunno why, because it's not like we're going to ditch him afterwards, but whatever."

"Prongs, I think you need to wait an extra five minutes before entering. We have a surprise planned for you. I'll call with the mirrors. Make sure to wait, though."

"Yeah, fine, but why again were you talking to Snivellus?"

"Oh, I figured I'd tell him something that would satisfy his curiosity, you know?" Sirius said with a cunning smile. "Well, I'll see you soon, mate." Sirius got up and left the table. James sat there and contemplated what his friend could have possibly told Snape.

Five minutes passed, then ten. No message yet from Sirius.

It wasn't as if Snape was curious about everything that the Marauders did. He was just listening in to what they talked about, often enough. He had lately only directly asked about Remus and—

The full force of what Sirius had done hit James and he almost fell out of his chair. He tripped all the way out of the Great Hall and raced outside. _He couldn't have,_ James thought. _My own best friend wouldn't do that. Would he? _For Sirius Black had indeed told Severus Snape the one thing that would satisfy his curiosity. And end his life. He had told Snape where they went every month, and how to get there himself.

James doubted that his friend had told Snape what Remus was; that would be the surprise at the end of the tunnel. Sirius was probably already sitting next to Remus in his dog-form, chuckling at his cleverness. Remus wouldn't have known, but there was no telling him now. And in a werewolf mind, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from tearing Snape to shreds.

James ran as fast as his legs would carry him. Around the castle, toward the tree. He saw a boy, no older than he, drag a heavy branch toward the base of the tree. James wouldn't make it. It was impossible. James ran and ran, watching as Severus Snape pressed the knot in the tree with ease.

It was like those dreams where your legs are running but you aren't moving. That's how James felt then; he would only be able to watch a boy get killed, and not prevent it. He couldn't breathe, but he watched as the tree branches froze in slow motion. It was a nightmare come to life.

James almost stopped in his tracks when he saw Snape enter the underground tunnel. Then he scolded himself and sprinted.

Fifty feet.

Thirty feet.

Ten feet.

Five seconds.

Two seconds.

He was at the tree. The orange tabby cat walked forward and tapped the Whomping willow base. The boy tore into the tunnel as if his life depended on it, which, in a way, it did.

Snape was unsuspecting, of both what was ahead and who was approaching form behind. James didn't want to startle him, so he slowed to a walk when he heard the boy's footsteps. This rescue would have to be timed perfectly. If he appeared too soon, Snape wouldn't believe him and continue, or he'd make too much noise and attract a full werewolf to their location. If he was too late, well, James didn't want to think about what would happen then.

James could hear the faintest howls of Remus, and the soft barks of Sirius. He still couldn't comprehend what his best friend had done. It was unforgivable. He might leave the Willow in the morning a murderer.

Snape's footsteps were getting closer, and closer, to the Shrieking Shack entrance. And from what James could hear, Remus would be waiting at the mouth of the whole, just around the corner, for him.

James quickened his pace, rounding the second-to-last corner. Up ahead, he heard footsteps falter, and a sharp intake of breath.

Snape had seen the werewolf that was Remus. It was time to act.

James darted forward and grabbed Snape from behind, throwing his hand over his mouth. The boy was stronger than he looked, and he made it hard for James to drag him away from imminent danger.

After a moment of struggling, James realized he'd need both hands. He grabbed his wand, pointed it at the boy he loathed, and whispered, "_Silencio_." Then, he safely removed his hand and watched Snape try to scream and shout. His eyes were wide in terror, his mouth gaping with words that would not come out. When he saw his attacker, he only thrashed more.

James knew he would never get them both to safety if this continued. He leaned down to Snape's eye and whispered, "If you don't cut this out now, I'm going to toss you back in there."

Instead of fighting, Severus Snape lost all of his will. The sheer horror of the night finally got to him. He slumped forward in a dead faint. It was only thanks to James that he didn't break his nose on the hard wall.

James dragged and pulled, unhappy with the dead weight. It took the greater part of an hour, much longer than it had taken a smug Snape to discover their secret, to get back out of the Whomping Willow path. When they were back above ground, James tossed the boy on the ground and pointed his wand at Snape's throat. He muttered a spell and Snape opened his eyes and realized the return of his voice. But it didn't seem that he could organize his thoughts enough, anyway.

James spoke instead. "It's not what you think. Sirius told you that, but Remus and I had no part. You can't tell anyone what you saw. Ever. If so, we can tell them a load of lies about you, but they'll believe it. That way we can all be expelled together. You hear?"

Poor Snape was still trembling with fear, but he nodded all the same.

"Good," James continued. "And just know that I didn't do this for you."

Severus Snape jumped to his feet, ducking around James' wand, and ran toward the castle. James doubted he'd ever return, but just in case, he thought he'd sleep in the castle for the night. He wasn't sure that he would be able to control himself around Sirius Black if he saw him again, anyway.

It was now the next evening and James hadn't spoken one word to Sirius. He was peeved at what had happened, and appalled that his friend was even capable of doing such a thing. He couldn't get over it. It had made for an awkward morning, when James had left to sit with Frank Longbottom at breakfast.

Remus came to talk after lunch, wondering what was up.

"You two break up, or something?" he had joked.

Once James had explained everything that had happened the night before, Remus didn't believe him. It took a lot of convincing, and an agreement to tell the same story under truth serum, for the boy to finally become as fired up as James. The worst thing for him, though, was the fact that he had been so close to murdering another student. Way too close. If anything had happened, he'd never forgive himself.

It was those events that led to James and Remus walking down to the feast together. Remus had stayed as far away from people as he could, and even farther from Sirius, the entire day. He knew it wouldn't last much longer, especially with the summer holidays starting tomorrow, but right now, he couldn't even look at his friend.

The Great Hall was decorated as it had been for the last week. Except this time, all of the house banners and colors were faded, as if they, too, were in question. James smiled at all of the decorations, and again when he saw the starry night sky above him. He took his seat next to Remus at the far end of the table, away from the Marauder's usual place in the very center. Peter hadn't heard anything yet, and James wasn't up to what felt like betraying his best friend again.

Albus Dumbledore was chatting happily with Professor McGonagall at the head table. Lily Evans was sitting next to Severus Snape, both leaning on the back wall. Snape, Remus noted, was a little paler than usual, and determinedly not looking in the direction of the Gryffindor table. That was completely understood, though. It was taking all of Remus' concentration not to stare at the two students.

James turned to his friend. "When do you think that the food will-"

Before he could finish his question, a huge feast appeared on every table, covering each surface. There was ham and roast and pudding and everything anyone could imagine. James dug in, putting a little bit of everything on his plate and urging Remus to do the same. They both ate like there wasn't a tomorrow, only pausing to breathe. Yet no matter how much food went into their mouths, it wasn't even remotely good without Sirius and Peter to enjoy it with them. James finally put his fork down and pushed his plate away. It wasn't worth being sick later.

The headmaster stood up. "Good evening, children. I want to thank you for another grand year and even greater events. Also, I thought it was about time to award the House Cup. But first, I want us all to give an enormous farewell to a good teacher and friend. Professor Lydia Mayshore, who has been with us for eight years, is retiring tomorrow. She will go on to travel, possibly write books in her spare time, who knows? But farewell, Lydia. It has been a good eight years."

All of the students cheered, except perhaps the Slytherins. The other three houses were on their feet, screaming and wolf-whistling. Professor Mayshore had definitely been liked by many of the students at Hogwarts.

"And now, for the most prestigious award a house can get. In the past, it has been achieved by Ravenclaw, the wise, Hufflepuff, the loyal, Slytherin, the cunning, and Gryffindor, the brave. Each house has tried their best this year. Yet only one may win. Who will it be?" Dumbledore let his words sink into the crowd, raising the level of suspension in the room. "In fourth place, with two hundred and ninety-eight points, Hufflepuff!" A few unenthusiastic cheers broke out from the Hufflepuff table, but most were at least somewhat upset by their huge loss once again.

"And in third place, with three hundred points even, Ravenclaw!" The Ravenclaws looked pleased with themselves and celebrated, jumping from the table and screaming. "The first and second place houses were separated by a mere four points. They have, as follows, three hundred and eighty-eight and three hundred eighty-four! Without further ado, I give you this year's House Cup champion: GRYFFINDOR!"

James couldn't believe his ears, but pulled Remus up to clap. He wore a smile that felt like it would split his face. He cheered and laughed until a tear trickled down his cheek. Then he laughed some more. It wasn't until the headmaster held up his hand for silence that James and Remus calmed down enough to sit.

"In the order of things, I think a change of decorations is in store." With a quick wave of his wand, Dumbledore changed the hangings and banners to all reflect the Gryffindor colors of gold and burgundy. Lion roars echoed throughout the Hall, and James grinned. It was one of the happiest moments that he had had so far in his years at Hogwarts. And he didn't want it to end.

Remus stayed with James for the evening as he finally got around to packing his stuff. The werewolf listed off as many things as he could think of that were necessary for the summer months. And when James refused to pack his mirror that would connect with Sirius', Remus slipped it into the very bottom of his trunk while James was downstairs. At eight o'clock, every Gryffindor headed out of the tower; Dumbledore had revealed that the prefects would be announced early this year. Instead of in the summer with next year's school supply list, it would be posted on the common room boards promptly at half past eight.

Peter had wanted to be prefect ever since he heard about them in the first year. In his mind, it was a huge honor to be a leader of the Gryffindor house; he'd be only fifteen and already heading a few students. One day, he hoped to be Head Boy. It would be a stretch, he knew, but with enough hard work, it could happen.

Reus led James to his favorite place in Hogwarts: the library. They sat down and whispered in hushed tones, then grabbed books and began to read.

Exactly five minutes after the announcement should've been posted, Frank Longbottom burst into the library, where he had exited ten minutes before, earning a sharp glare from Madame Pince. He scurried over to James and panted, "The prefects—have been—announced. Come quickly."

Remus stood up, pulling James to his feet. "Frank, did you look to see who they are?"

"No, I only just saw McGonagall putting it up. Then I ran straight here to get you two."

"What are we waiting for, then? We need to see the words to officially prove that Remus won."

James and Remus had been arguing for the better part of the week about who would become prefect. James' argument was that Remus was responsible, as well as smart. "Besides, who in their right mind would make me prefect?" he'd laughed. Remus had come back with, "Only someone mental would make a werewolf one."

Now they were about to know at last. James pushed open the portrait hole and scrambled inside. He and Remus made their way to the front of the crowd beneath the board. And what they saw made both boys grin like idiots.

Prefects for the Next Year

Girl: Lily Evans

Boy: Remus Lupin

It was time to go home. Remus and James had had an awkward night of trying to avoid Sirius. They considered it an accomplishment that they, in fact, had. But at last, their trunks were being taken to Hogsmeade as they ate breakfast. It was their last meal at Hogwarts for the year. Another year came and passed. Everyone in the Great Hall was solemn.

Remus found a separate compartment from the other two Marauders in the very back of the train. If Sirius was looking for him, he wasn't looking hard, and Remus didn't see him during the entire train ride. James sat across from him, looking tired and upset. Remus knew how hard it must be for him to find out about his best friend. But no matter; they couldn't go back and fix it now.

When the Hogwarts Express slowed, they were still sitting in silence, but it wasn't an awkward silence. It was filled with hurt and longing, sadness and joy at leaving. When the train pulled to a stop, the boys were still sitting.

"You reckon we should be getting off, mate?" Remus asked.

"I suppose we have to, don't we?"

They headed off the train and onto Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Remus spotted his mother immediately and paused to hug James goodbye. "I'll see you this summer, right? Send me an owl with the times."

James nodded wordlessly, clutching his best friend. When they finally let go, James waved and Remus walked to his mother. He turned right before he got there and wandered back.

"Hey, Prongs? Don't you think we were a bit irresponsible this year? What with the Map and the Animagi and everything?"

James cracked a smile. "I guess we could've been a little more responsible."

"You know, I think we'll just have to tell anyone who asks that we did all of that in out fifth year." James laughed out loud as his friend turned again and, this time, made it all the way to his mother. She embraced him and he knew, no matter how long he stayed at Hogwarts each year, this was where he belonged.

Peter Pettigrew was walking onto the platform with Sirius, who was scanning the crowds for James. "Maybe he'll be over there," he suggested timidly, pointing toward Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Yet James wasn't. Sirius didn't understand how his best friend could avoid him so easily; they never had been able to before. Whatever the case, Peter bid his best friend a farewell and hugged him. Then he went in search of his own father, who was standing by the barrier leading back into the Muggle world. Peter ran to his father and hugged him, thinking about how many more hugs he would give throughout the day. It seemed to be a new record already.

"Hey, son. How was the rest of the year?"

"Can I tell you about it when we are with Mum? So I don't have to repeat it twice," he laughed.

"Of course, and speaking of your mother, she has a surprise waiting for you when we get home. You ready to go? Said goodbye to your friends?"

Peter nodded, though in all honesty, he didn't know if the word 'friend', when it applied to him, at least, was plural anymore.

James was wandering on the platform, trying to avoid his parents for the time being. They wouldn't mind; he just didn't want Sirius to find him yet.

It was on his third round of the area that he bumped right into someone. He looked up and saw the red hair. Lily Evans jumped back. "Sorry," James muttered.

"Yeah," she said, still surprised. "See you next year, then, Potter."

Normally, James would've been excited that Lily had spoken to him without an insult, but not this time. Besides, he didn't have anyone to share it with.

He walked with his head down. And, unsurprisingly, he ran into another person. This time, it was a male, and James was worried that he had hit someone who didn't take well to people who ran into him. He looked up to apologize and faltered.

He was staring into the familiar face of Sirius Black.

"James, I wanted to say that I know why you're mad. And I didn't-"

"I know. I understand. And I forgive you, mate. If you'll take me back as your partner-in-crime, that is," James added.

Instead of saying anything, Sirius pulled his best friend into a hug. When James pulled away, he was casually blinking away a tear that had found its way into his eye. Whatever happened between the two of them, he knew, it couldn't tear them apart. They were two sides of the same coin.

Sirius was just grateful that James had forgiven him. It would've been a long summer if he hadn't. As for the summer, Sirius hugged his friend one last time and insisted that he had to find his parents alone. The Blacks, especially Mrs. Black, would be very offended if their son showed up with James Potter in tow.

When he spotted hid parents, Sirius slowed down to a walk. He dragged his feet until his mother saw him. Her eyes narrowed in on him.

"Where have you been? I've been waiting here for twenty minutes with Regulus, who made it his priority to see me first." _Great, _Sirius thought. _Just another thing he's better at. Here's to the summer._

"I was saying goodbye to some people, Mum. I won't see them until next year, you know."

"Don't talk to me like that. And it had better not have been that James Potter. He's a blood traitor if I ever saw one."

She turned and walked into the Muggle world. Sirius followed at a distance, thinking that the last time he had done this, it was at Christmas. This summer wouldn't be half as fun as Christmas had been.

Severus Snape stood with Lily Evans and her family on the platform. Even though they were Muggles, Albus Dumbledore had taught them how to get onto the platform each year to pick up their daughter. Snape's own family wasn't there yet. His father had told him that he would have to wait until they got around to King's Cross.

When Mr. and Mrs. Snape walked through the magical barrier, they looked angry. But that was normal for them. Had they looked joyful, then Severus Snape would be worried. He turned to Lily. "I'll see you around, okay?"

She touched his hand for the briefest of moments, knowing that he couldn't be hugged by a Muggle-born in front of his parents. "Goodbye, Sev."

Snape walked up to his father, who didn't even acknowledge his presence. His mother followed her husband's lead, walking away from their only son without one word.

Snape just knew that it was going to be the worst summer vacation so far.


End file.
